Falling For You
by KellethMetheus
Summary: An AU story set pre-series. Sam has made some hard choices and now she must live with the consequences. What will it mean for not only her and Jack but Charlie as well. I hope you give it a try it is hard to explain with out giving too much away.
1. Falling For You 1

Author's Note: I'm not sure what happened to the first chapter. I might have been when I fixed the soldiers. Sorry about that but this is now the first chapter once again. Thank you to Kamikashi for letting me know.

Thank you also to all those who helped me with this story. You know who you are and I thank you all. **:)**

* * *

The pain came over him in waves. He could no longer remember how long he'd been there. After nearly escaping, they had moved him and all the other men elsewhere. It was harsher, more brutal in this prison than the first one-more pain, much more pain.

His eyes drifted closed; somewhere outside his cell there were new noises. He turned his head, trying to hear them better, to identify them. Once more, there was the stomp of boots and the sound of harsh voices; he tensed trying to prepare himself for what was coming, but a new noise was added to sound of the boots: the steady rhythm of gunfire.

Struggling to find his unused voice, he called, "In here." He could understand himself but he was unsure that anyone else could.

Ignoring the new pain it caused, he reached out for the tin plate and cup that held his water and stale bread from the day before. Stretching out his hand, he grasped them, spilling his only source of food and water for the next few days. Smashing the two of them together, he tried to make as much noise as he could. Hopefully someone would hear.

There was silence. Using all his remaining strength, Jack managed to do it one more time, hoping that would be enough, as the blackness took him.

When he woke up next, he was floating and the pain was gone. He tried to sit up, but a hand restrained him, and it was followed by voices. At first, the voices filled him with fear: the voices meant questions, and then more pain when he refused to answer.

He listened for a moment, quickly realizing that these voices were different. They were soft and worried. Someone bent close, "What's your name, soldier?"

His mouth opened to tell them his name, but the words wouldn't come, only a croaking noise.

A hand patted his shoulder, "It's all right. We'll figure it out and get you home. Just lie still and sleep."

He tried to tell them he had no home to go to, that he was alone. Jack closed his eyes, he was so tired and the drugs were strong, as they pulled him back into the void. His last thought was of Hanson; he would soon be able to find her...

* * *

Samantha Carter stood in the kitchen of her new home-the one she and Charlie had chosen together. She was living another woman's life and raising somebody else's child. Some of the pictures on the walls were of Sam, but most were of a life she had no part of.

She loved a man who may or may not be dead, and now she was his son's mother. Worst of all she had left him behind.

The phone rang, startling her. She took a deep breath, knowing who it was. He always called at this time each evening: right after dinner, when he knew she was home. Looking at the caller ID, she could see his name: Jonas Hanson.

She broke off the engagement a few weeks before she left for Iraq. How could she marry Jonas when he hit her? It was only once but that was all it took: one slap that had resulted in five stitches to her arm. At first, Jonas seemed to accept her decision. About a month ago, the calls began.

She had answered at first, but something about his voice scared her; she began to ignore the calls. Not knowing what else to do, she commenced taking her level three-advanced hand to hand combat class, just in case. There was more than herself to protect now, there was Charlie.

Looking out the window, she watched Charlie playing in the backyard. The phone kept ringing, but she ignored it, finding strength in Charlie to continue. She didn't move until the doorbell rang, just as the phone stopped ringing.

Sam stared at the door, scared. Was it Jonas at the door? Had he finally come for her?

Wringing her hands, she crossed to the door, looking through the peephole. On the doorstep was Major Charles Kawalsky, one of Jack's friends. She leaned against the door, relieved, but only until the questions began bouncing around her head. Why would he be here? She hadn't seen him since the court martial.

Opening the door, she took a deep breath. "Kawalsky, what are you doing here?"

"Sam, may I come in?" he motioned to inside the house. "Where's Charlie?" he asked searching the immediate area for the boy.

Sam's blood ran cold. Had they finally been able to confirm that Jack really was dead? Did they ultimately have a body to show them?

The official story was that Colonel Jack O'Neill had been killed in the line of duty around sixteen months ago in Iraq. She had almost convinced herself that what they told her was the truth, even though she had seen him alive less than twelve months ago. So had Kawalsky.

When she had met Jack in that prison cell, she had been so naive. Even though it was her second tour of duty, she had never really seen the war, not up close and definitely not personally. Her gender had screened her from it; she had never seen the death and sickness it brings.

But her eyes had been opened and her world was never the same. It all began with a small malfunction with the computer on her AWAC radar plane and an emergency landing at a remote base. She had been recalled to the main base by convoy. When she protested leaving the plane behind, Sam had been told that they would send someone else to fix the problem and fly it back.

* * *

_Early the next morning, Sam climbed into a Humvee and headed across the desert. The convoy moved,_ _slowly leaving a trail of dust across the scorching hot desert. Sam tried to sleep,_ _but it was too hot. Instead,_ _she just stared out at the barren landscape,_ _wondering_ _what she was doing here._

_The Kevlar helmet on her head felt alien and heavy, making her sweat more than from the effects of the temperature. Three other men were in the vehicle with her._ _Their eyes never stopped scanning for danger as the clutched their guns,_ _ready for anything. _

_Everything was foreign._ _She was used to seeing this from the air, but right here on the ground,_ _the world looked so very different. She could see the devastation and_ _the destroyed houses and imagine the ruined lives that had once lived there. _

_About five hours into the trip, the convoy passed though a small village and everything went south. The streets were empty,_ _but you could see people peeking out from the windows watching,_ _waiting. An eerie silence fell over her companions as they drove through the village. On the outskirts, the lead Humvee was taken out by a roadside bomb._

_Suddenly everything was in chaos._ _All around her,_ _the sounds of gunfire and screams of the wounded and dying filled her ears. She had no choice but to react as her vehicle jerked to a stop. All around her,_ _there was the steady drum of gunfire, smoke, and the smell of blood. _

_Reaching out she took one of the dead man's weapon. The gun kicked a little as she fired it for the first time. People fell around her, bodies of both the attackers and the attacked. _

_The roar around her was deafening and all she could think about was going home. She never knew what happened, only that she lost consciousness and woke up on the way to a prison, where she met Jack._

_She was in that hell with him for two weeks and in the end she had to leave him behind.

* * *

_

A hand fell on her shoulder, "Sam, are you all right?"

Swallowing, she pulled herself together, opening the door wider, "Yes, I'm fine, please come in. Have a seat in the living room. Would you like anything to drink?" She asked, heading into the kitchen. Gripping the sink, she struggled for control. Grabbing a glass, she listened to Kawalsky, as she drank the whole glass of water.

The Major spoke again. "No, thank you. I can only stay a moment." He paused. "Sam, sit down." He waited for her to sit before continuing. "There's news of Jack. He's alive, they found him. The Brits raided some prison over there and they found him. He was in pretty bad shape."

Sam closed her eyes and dropped her head into her hands. Then the tears started; Sam knew she had no claims on him but he was alive and she was happy. Charlie would still have his father, and just maybe someday...

Lifting her head, she looked Kawalsky in the eye, "How is he? Where is he? When can we see him?" The questions were fired in rapid succession.

Kawalsky held up his hands. "Whoa, one at a time." Fidgeting he continued, "They found Jack a couple of weeks ago, but they wanted to make sure that he would pull through before they notified the family. The doctors kept him sedated most of the time; he doesn't know about Sarah yet. He will arrive at the Academy Hospital tomorrow. He's ready to be released, they just wanted to keep him there for a while longer."

It was then that Charlie came bounding in, carrying his baseball bat and ball. After sitting down on the arm of Sam's chair, he noticed her tears. "What's wrong?" Then his eyes fell on the man sitting across from Sam, dressed in Air Force Blues.

"Why are you here?" Fear filled his eyes, "Nothing happened to Grandpa Jake did it. He's all right?"

The boy had lost too many people from his life, and he knew that Jacob was sick, just like his mother had been.

Sam wrapped her arms around the boy. "This man knows your dad and he has good news. They found him. He's alive. In a few days, we will be able to go and see him. He came home to you, just like he promised he would."

Kawalsky left soon after that, making Sam a promise to call her as soon as Jack arrived.

Turning her head, she looked at Charlie. She loved that boy with his shy smile and his quick sense of humor, and there was no way she would give him up, even though his father was now alive.

A little while later, Sam sat in her bedroom studying a photograph of Jack O'Neill. He was alive! Part of her wanted to jump up and down, but what would he think when he saw her? When she met Sarah, Sam had no idea that she was Jack's wife. She had only seen a woman who needed a friend. Someone to listen to her, and to try and ease the burden she carried.

She had been back from Iraq for about two months, and was working inside the Cheyenne Mountain Complex, when her father was diagnosed with cancer. This meant daily trips to the hospital to see him as he went through his first round of chemotherapy.

On one of those trips she had found a little boy in the hallway crying.

* * *

_Kneeling at the boy's side, Sam asked, "Are you all right?" She knew this was the cancer wing, and that_ _somebody in his family was sick._

_Charlie looked up._ _His eyes rested on her blue uniform._ "_Mom's sick and Dad's dead. He said he would come back but this time he didn't. I ran when they told me._ _I ran away and now I can't find my way back to Mom's room again. She'll be worried."_

"_I understand, my dad's sick too. He's in that room over there." She pointed to one of the doorways. "He's a General. Would you like to meet him while I talk to a nurse? I bet she can help us find your mom."_

_The boy nodded and Sam offered him her hand. "What is your mother's name?" _

"_Sarah Miller." He said as they walked into the room together. _

_Jacob Carter looked up as his daughter came into the room with an eight or nine year old boy. "Dad, I would like you to meet..."She stumbled, as she realized she didn't know the boy's name yet._

"_Charlie." the boy smiled._

_Sam led him to her father's bedside and sat him down._ "_Why don't you teach him to play chess while I see if I can find his mom? She's in the hospital somewhere."_

_A smile crossed Jacob's face, "I can do that. Would you like that,_ _Charlie?"_

_The boy nodded. "Dad started to teach me but then he got deployed to Iraq. He was going to continue when he got home, but that won't happen now." Both adults could hear the sadness in his voice._

_Jacob nodded for Sam to head out the door and she left the two of them alone while she went to locate his mother._

It didn't taken Sam long to find Sarah, the hospital staff had been looking for Charlie. Sam had returned him to his mother and that was the beginning of a whole new chapter in Sam's life.

As Sarah deteriorated, Sam took on more and more of Charlie's care. Until about three months ago, Sarah was hospitalized to die. The two of them watched her slip away from them, and there was nothing they could do to stop it or save her.

When the doctors told Sarah that there was no hope, she immediately brought up the idea of Sam adopting Charlie. Her ex-husband was dead and she wanted to know that Charlie would be safe. Sam had no reason to argue, and agreed to take the boy.

Just after Sarah's death, Sam entered the O'Neill house for the first time to pack up Charlie's things. While they were in his room, Charlie had shown her a picture of his father. Imagine her surprise when she saw the man she left behind in Iraq smiling back at her from inside the frame.

Now he was coming home and what would he think when he found out who she was and what she had done? Lying back on the bed she clutched the picture to her chest hoping he wouldn't hate her, the choices she had made then, and she was now wondering if she had done the right thing after all.

* * *

There all fixed. I don't know what happened.** :)**


	2. Falling For You 2

**Author's Note:** Thank you to all those who reviewed and added this story or myself to their alerts. I love writing it helps me relax and hide for a while from my five kids. Yes, I have five and I home school. As I write this my eight year old is doing his math beside me.

**To my anonymous reviewers:** **dp():** I would love to give you the chapter of Dreams you wanted but I have no way to get it to you. Glad you like the new one. **kinnik72 ()**: I'm glad you do. Thank you for reading. **killer bc () **Your Welcome. To all those who just read, thank you as well.

* * *

Sam stood in the doorway unsure, of what to do; she had been coming here for a week. A noise on the bed drew her attention to Colonel Jack O'Neill. She studied the man on the bed; he looked much better now. It was time to bring Charlie to see him. The doctor had told her that he was reducing his medication and Jack would be conscious soon.

Crossing the room, she took a look at the sleeping man. Reaching out, she pushed the too-long hair from his forehead. It was time to cut his hair; he wouldn't like it long. He had saved her life and now she was his son's mother. Fate was a funny thing.

The man on the bed groaned, "Go, Hansen, that's an order."

She pulled her hand back from his forehead as though he burned her. She realized that he was remembering how she had to leave him behind when the two of them escaped. She had tried to go back for him, but they wouldn't let her. Jack had stayed to lay down cover fire, in order to make sure that she reached the chopper. He had sacrificed himself rather than let her get caught again. He knew what would have happened to her.

As soon as she had been able to, she pushed anyone and everyone in an attempt to find the colonel, but no one had known who he was or what branch of the military he belonged to. She had known him only as "Jack" and "the colonel". No last name.

They had politely told her that "this man didn't exist." Whoever he was, he wasn't one of theirs. She had pushed the issue and ended up with a permanent blemish on her record for insubordination.

Worst of all, or so she thought at the time, she was sent here to Colorado Springs to work on some dead-end project. It was something that was never supposed to work, but with her help it did – sort of. They got the ring moving but whatever it was supposed to do, it didn't work. If her theory was correct, that ring held much more possibilities than NASA ever did.

Jack shifted again in his sleep, "Hansen!" He bolted upright, breathing hard. His head snapped around, taking in his surroundings.

Gently, she pushed him back down on the bed. His eyes focused on her. "Sara?", He reached up to touch her cheek.

Sam flinched from his touch and stepped back; this was the first time he had been awake. Although she fought it, her memory pulled her back to the moment when they met.

_

* * *

After hitting the ground, she crawled over to an empty patch of wall and put her back to it. She pulled her knees up to her chin with her arms wrapped around them. She was trying to be as small as possible. In this place you didn't want to be noticed. Any noise or sound could give her femininity away. _

_From inside one of the pockets of her uniform, she pulled out her cap and placed it on her head, pulling it low over her face, hoping it would help to hide who she was._

_Her eyelids drooped, trying to pull her into sleep, but she was in danger here. Slowly, she looked around at the others in the room, but not enough to expose her face._

_Men lay on the floor around her. Some were sick, others were injured, and others no longer had the energy or will to move. By some miracle, none of them had realized that she was a woman. In the last few hours, she had kept to herself since her captures had tossed her inside this cell._

_A few of the other prisoners had come over and tried to talk to her, but she only stared at the ground, giving them no response. Just a few minutes ago, their daily ration had arrived and even that didn't tempt her to move. From all the way across the room, she could smell the mushy oatmeal, but she didn't stir, other than to look at the food with longing._

_One man came over; he tried to speak to her earlier, but was rebuffed like everyone else. This time he brought her food consisting of the mush, a tin cup of water, and a piece of stale bread._

_He squatted down in front of her so that if she looked up, he was at eye level. Placing her cup to the side, he pried her hands from the death grip on her knees. Putting them around the bowl he said, "Take it. You will need your strength in here."_

_Shaking her head, she tried to drop the bowl, but he tightened his grip. She just wanted to keep hiding. This man was too close to her, close to her secret, and she was afraid. This whole thing had her frightened, and she was not reacting rationally._

_Something gave her away and he dropped her hands, "Look at me solider. I'm not going to hurt you." His voice was soft and kind._

_Hating the fear that coursed through her, Sam raised her eyes to meet his, as ordered, knowing that she could no longer keep her secret. Now someone would know, and she only hoped it wouldn't be the cause of her death or his._

_Blue eyes met brown and they widened. His mouth opened, but no words came out. He swallowed, realizing how much danger this solider was in._

_Squeezing her hands gently, he dropped his gaze and spoke quietly, "Eat your food and talk to no one else. I'm not sure who to trust in here. You can trust me. When they call lights out, I'll come for you. I will do what I can to protect you." He touched her shoulder. "Keep your head down and we might be able to get you out of here alive."_

_Sam ate, part of her wanted to look around and find the solider. He was obviously a high ranking officer, maybe a Lieutenant Colonel or a full Colonel. He was a man used to giving orders and having them followed. _

_Her fingers scooped into the bowl and found nothing. While lost in thought, she had already eaten the food. Reaching out, she put down the bowl. She lifted the tin cup with her other hand. The water was disgusting, but she drank it anyway. This was the desert after all. Water was water._

_A guard came in, yelling something in a language she didn't understand, brandishing his weapon. Then, the dim light went out and the room was dark. Panic infused Sam; she had no idea where the officer was. Would he really come for her, like he promised?_

* * *

Jack frowned, all he could see was the blond halo around the woman bending over him. He looked at his outstretched hand, confused by her reaction. Blinking, he brought his vision into focus. His eyes narrowed. "Who are you? Where am I?" Panic colored his voice.

Unsure how to handle this, she snapped to attention, "Captain Samantha Carter, Sir. You are in Colorado Springs at the Academy Hospital."

Jack returned her salute, falling into roles assigned to them by the Air Force. "What's going on Captain? Where is Sara?" His eyes closed as he remembered what had happened before he left for Iraq this time. The shouting and the silence, then finally the divorce about a year before his last tour. She was probably married again, happy without him to drag her down.

About the same time, he was deployed, Sara had been seeing someone else. Did she even care that he was actually alive? Would she let him see their son?

"Sir?" The Captain's voice broke into his thoughts. He opened his eyes to see her sitting beside the bed. "I regret to inform you that Sara Miller died three months ago. I was with her at the end with Charlie."

Pain washed over Jack, they hadn't been together, but she was his son's mother, "What happened to Charlie when she died?"

"I'm his legal guardian. They thought that you were dead and so Sara had me adopt him. He's been with me ever since."

He closed his eyes as he fought the tears. _Charlie_. He was too young to have so much pain. Turning his head, he looked away from her at the wall.

Staying like that for a moment, he gave himself the time he needed to gain control of his emotions. He turned back to Sam, "Why you? Who are you? I don't remember meeting you before..." he trailed off. She was familiar, but he didn't remember her in Sara's circle of friends.

Shaking her head, she looked away, unsure if she should tell him how they had met. "I found Charlie in the hospital. He was lost. He had wandered away and couldn't find his way back to Sara's room. We all became friends and when she was too sick to look after him anymore, I became his temporary guardian."

Sighing, she shook her head, "We hoped Sara would get better, but she didn't. When she realized that she wasn't going to make it..." Sam paused and took a deep breath, trying to control her emotions. "She said he needed someone to love him and I already did." Her voice shook at the end and she looked away. Sara had been a good friend despite their age difference, but she would not cry in front of the Colonel. She was a solider, after all.

His touch on her arm startled her, "It's all right, Samantha." he paused as he said her name. "We always mourn those we love. It's all right to cry for her."

"Yes, Colonel," still not giving into her tears.

Not knowing what to do, he tried to make her smile, "Call me Jack, that's my name after all. It seems like we'll we will be seeing a lot of each other. Isn't that right, Captain?" Something told him that this woman would not step back now that he was home. He could see that she loved his son, and he would not take Charlie away from her.

"My name is Sam, you're not my CO; you can call me that or Carter if you prefer." Turing back to face him, she blinked back the unshed tears and smiled at him, the first real smile since they met.

Then her smile got bigger and it warmed him. Jack was floored; something about this woman soothed his soul, made him want. As to what, he wasn't sure. Studying Sam, he decided that he was glad that Charlie had her, and knew that he couldn't be in better hands. "Sam it is."

Charlie had moved on, and this smiley Captain-Sam, he corrected, would be a better parent than he ever had been. She was still unmarked by the horrors that he had seen and heard. Sadness washed over him. He could never be like her, and he hoped she would never be like him. Rolling away from the sunny life she lived in, he said, "Can you leave me now? I need some time alone."

"I'm going to stay a little bit longer, in case you need somebody."

She gave him a minute to argue and then she continued, "Tomorrow after school, I'm going to bring Charlie to see you. Is that all right?" As she spoke, she sat down on the chair beside the bed and folded her arms, waiting for his answer.

Jack ignored her and pretended to sleep. He was just glad to have someone close, even if she was a stranger.

Sam sighed, this was not going to be easy, but she wasn't going to give up. They stayed that way until he finally slipped into sleep. Sam watched him for a while longer before the leaving the room to make sure she was in time to pick Charlie up from school.

* * *

There I hope I answered some of your question and didn't raise too many more. Another chapter this week and more next week.

~Kelleth~


	3. Falling For You 3

**Author's Note:** Here is number three. The last one for this week. I will post three more next week. I have them and they are all edited and ready to post.

This story started much differently and then I took how they met (Sam was a medical chopper pilot) and put it in Things He Never Understood because I was stuck with this one and didn't know where to go.

Then I decided to merge it with another bit of a story that I had written, but I still had to have a reason for Sam to be where I needed her to be. That piece of inspiration came from the beginning of Iron Man.

So this story has been written and re-written many times before becoming what you see here. As for why Sam is called Hansen, that answer is in this chapter and I hope it will make sense to all of you.

**To my anonymous reviewers: **I don't always do this but today I had a little time. ** dp()**: if you want to leave your address you need to add spaces or takes it out. Send it again with spaces and I should get it or you can add it to your name. ** kinnik72 ()**: I feel honored that you consider this a good story and thank you for the compliment.**:)** **Angel1964 ():** I will keep writing but this one is done. All 21 chapters will be posted over the next few weeks. I'm working on other stuff now. I hope to have a few things done and ready to post once this one is done.

Well on with the show....

* * *

As Sam and Charlie walked down the halls of the hospital, she couldn't help but feel a little déjà vu. Only this time the patient would live, not about to slip away, no matter what she did. Jack would come home, wherever that was.

The two of them stopped at the correct door. Sam opened it, stepping inside, but Charlie hesitated in the doorway. His father lay in the bed asleep, tears filled his eyes as he slowly crossed the room to the bed. Reaching out he touched his father's shoulder. Then he turned to Sam, "He's real. It's really him."

With tears in her own blue eyes, Sam pulled a chair next to the bed and Charlie sat down. A few minutes later, he laid his head down next to Jack's hand, waiting for him to wake up.

Sam pulled up her own chair and sat beside the boy with her hand on his shoulder, wishing she could have saved him this pain.

_

* * *

Pulling her knees tighter against her chest, Sam fought the hysteria that climbed up her throat and threatened to escape in a scream. She didn't know how long she sat there; time no longer had any meaning. From right beside her his voice spoke, "_soldier_ get a grip."_

_It was then that she realized that she was close to hyperventilating. Concentrating, she slowed her breathing and moved when he said, "Follow me." His hand pulled hers from its grip on her knees and linked his hand with hers._

_Slowly, they picked their way through the sleeping bodies that littered the floor. Now that the panic had passed, Sam's night vision was able to help her maneuver around the obstacles. She dropped his hand no longer needing it, but once the connection was broken, she missed it._

_He stopped suddenly and Sam almost ran into him. His voice was hard as he spoke, "Let go, Nelson. Back off."_

"_Collecting new meat, Colonel? You don't seem the type." The unseen man said. _

_Sam heard, rather than saw the Colonel kick the man. "I've warned you before Nelson, leave those boys alone; especially this one. He's under my protection."_

_Nelson grunted with pain. He sneered back, "Whatever you say colonel." _

_To Sam, the Colonel said, "Come on."_

_There were no more problems before they reached the Colonel's corner. "_soldier_, have a seat and I'll pass you a blanket; it gets cold at night. I'll take first watch while you sleep, _soldier_."_

"_Airman," Sam's voice was quiet._

"_Pardon?" the Colonel asked._

"_I'm in the Air Force. Lieutenant Hansen." Sam lied. She didn't know for sure who this man was. If they knew who she was, it might make things even worse for her. So she had given him her ex-fiancé's name. _

"_I was caught while in a convoy. Everyone else died. I fly planes and I had to kill men right in front of me. I had to shoot them or I would have died. I never expected to feel like this." Her voice was shaking as she spoke. She closed her eyes. It was all there replaying over and over again._

_He didn't ask her anymore questions. Instead, Jack lay down and motioned for her to do the same. He could watch from there. _

_She lay down a few inches away. Soon, she began to shiver. All the stress of the day seemed to overwhelm her and she began to cry. She made no sound, but her body shook with her attempts to suppress the noises that threatened to escape._

_Jack knew what she was fighting. He would never have done this with a man, but she was in more danger than any man would be, from both the other prisoners and the guards. Reaching out, he drew her close, "Shh, Hansen. Just relax, my name is Jack. I'll watch over you. No one will hurt you while I'm here."_

_She immediately turned her face into his chest and wept until her tears were spent. They stayed that way for a long time. Jack enjoying being close to another person and Sam enjoyed the comfort he offered, making her feel safe for the first time since the shooting began._

_Jack looked out across the mass of sleeping bodies. Seeing that no one was moving and Hansen was asleep, he slipped out of the blankets and moved to his spot on the wall. _

_His eyes never left the sea of bodies while his hand scrapped at the chinking between the bricks. The sense of urgency increased. Now he had to get her out of here before they found out she was female._

_Hours later, Jack returned to his spot. Immediately, the woman turned into his warmth, curling up to him. He studied the room again, looking for another way; he had worked out his plan and it should work with just him, but now he had Hansen to take with him. _

_She added more risk, but he couldn't leave her behind. He had been left behind, but he would never do the same. Closing his eyes, he slept until he was woken by the movement of the other prisoners a little while later._

* * *

Jack woke up, his mind was clearer but he was still disorientated. The memories of yesterday assaulted him, Sara was dead- cancer, and Charlie had found a new life, while he was a prisoner.

Closing his eyes, he hoped to block out the pain, but it broke over him in a huge wave. Why hadn't she told him, how long had she known? Had she sent him off to war knowing that she might not be there when he came home? If he had known, he wouldn't have left them, he would have stayed.

Bringing his hands to his face, he pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes to try and stop the tears. A hand touched his leg, startling him. His hand lashed out to defend himself from the threat.

Sam reacted when Charlie reached out to touch his dad. Seconds before Jack's hand moved, Sam saw him tense up and she grabbed Charlie's shoulders, pulling him back. The Colonel's hand barely grabbed air.

She knew the signs; her father had been the same way after Vietnam. The Colonel's grip would not have been gentle, and it would have caused both of them even more pain. The one time a similar incident had happened with her father, it had hurt her father far more than the small bruise on her arm did her.

"Colonel O'Neill!" Her voice was sharper than she had intended.

His eyes opened and he focused on the blond Captain, holding a crying Charlie in her arms. The look on her face told him all he needed to know. He had come close to hurting Charlie, even if he had not intended to.

Staring down at his hand, he retracted it, ashamed at his reaction. Frustrated at himself he growled. Hearing the noise, Charlie fought her grip and wiped away the tears. He wanted to reach his father to let him know that he was fine.

"I'm fine, Dad. You didn't hurt me. I'm sorry I startled you. Sam warned me, but I forgot."

Jack refused to look at Charlie. What had he become, could he find his way out of the blackness? Did he deserve to be a father after what he'd done?

Charlie, on the other hand, didn't give up. "Dad, they said you can come home tomorrow, you can come live with me and Sam."

The Captain's eyes met the Colonel's, and he nodded. He was in control now; Charlie would be safe with him. She let him go, but stayed close, just in case.

Without hesitation, Charlie sat on the bed beside his dad. "Dad, Mom's gone. After you left, she got sick. She said not to tell you that she was sick 'cause you were needed where you were. She thought that she would be okay, but in the end, it took her away from me," his brow furrowed.

"After Mom died, Sam took me in and looked after me. She adopted me so I would have a home. You'll come home and live with us, won't you?" Charlie looked to Jack to make sure this was all right with him. The man nodded grateful to this woman who had taken care of his son.

Receiving his father's blessing, Charlie continued, "She's in the Air Force too, but she's an astroph ...." He looked to Sam for the word that he couldn't remember.

She smiled and supplied the word. "… an astrophysicist."

Jack closed his eyes. _Of all the people Sara could have found to look after Charlie._

She knew how he felt about people like this captain. They put on a uniform and sat back making plans and let the grunts like him take all the heat and gunfire.

Charlie interrupted his thoughts, "And she flew fighter jets for a while, and also those big radar planes… The AWACs, remember, I told you they look funny. She did that in the war. While you were fighting on the ground, she was up in the sky keeping men like you safe. Daddy, she was like an angel," he looked to his father for approval of his new mother.

Jack's brown eyes met the Captain's blue ones. In them he saw pride as she stood a little straighter.

"Pilot?" he asked, confused because she didn't wear a set of wings on her uniform.

If possible, Carter stood up straighter. "Yes, sir. I have logged over a hundred hours in enemy airspace. I wanted to be an astronaut, but now..." She looked at Charlie, shrugged, smiled at him and then at the Colonel.

Smiling back, Jack decided that he just might like her; she wasn't one of t_hose_ scientists, it seemed. "So, Charlie said I can go home tomorrow."

"Charlie, do you remember the way to my dad's room? He wanted to see you this morning."

Reaching out, she touched his shoulder, drawing the boy's attention. "Your dad and I have some things to talk about."

The boy nodded, "Do you think he'll want to play chess?"

Sam smiled, "I'm sure he'd like that."

After giving his dad a hug, Charlie jumped off the bed and left the room, He paused in the doorway. "I love you, Dad. I'm glad you're home, now me, you, and Sam can be a family!"

* * *

I can just picture the look of horror on Sam's face at Charlie's words. Let me know what you think. More next week maybe sooner if I hear from enough of you.....

Thanks for reading ~Kelleth~


	4. Falling For You 4

**Author's Note: **Well here is the next one sooner than I planned but when twenty-two of you speak I listen. Thank you to all those who have read the first three chapters and there is more to come. I have seven back at the moment and I hope to have more soon. I'm working on changing the last three chapter after some suggestions by one of my betas. Got up really early with the kids so I had time, now I'm going back to bed.

Oh and if you are interested in taking a look at what is coming down the pipeline from me I have a list of stories that I have dug out of my drawer to help me get over my writers block with Dreams. I have completed some of them will post them once Falling is done. I also need to find a beta or two. If you have a preference in the order vote in my poll. I have told you which ones are done.

**To my Anonymus reviewers**: **dp()** it should have worked this time. I hope that you enjoy the preview. That is about how I pictured her as well. ** NightCat ()** glad you liked the others as well. They are there for your enjoyment. Thank you for reading.

* * *

Jack looked at Sam, who had a horrified look on her face. She was unsure how the Col-Jack would react to his son's building a new family.

He wanted to laugh, at the horrified look on her face but instead he said, "At ease, Captain. I know what Charlie's doing. I don't hold you responsible in any way. He just wants his life to be normal again. And who is _Dad_?" His brow now furrowed; he bore a striking resemblance to Charlie.

"My father is Major General Jacob Carter. He suffers from the same cancer Sara had. It was how I met her. I was here to see Dad when I found Charlie," She paused to give him time to say anything he wanted.

When he chose not to, Sam continued, "They said that if your exam checks out you can go home tomorrow. The British medics kept you until you stabilized. Also, it took a while to figure out where you belonged. We'll go back to the house tomorrow and then we can decide what to do about living arrangements. I can move out if you like."

Still not looking at her, he said, "No, I'll just stay until I can find an apartment. Charlie needs you. I'm not the best man to parent Charlie, I never was."

Anger crossed Sam's face, "No way! You aren't going to do this to me and Charlie. You're his father and he needs you. I won't let you leave that boy. Don't even try. I'm not some soft little woman you can push around. No, Jack O'Neill, you will be a part of that boy's life. He just got you back and now you want to leave him again? I know your life hasn't been exactly wonderful, but that boy needs you more than he needs me and if you want to be selfish…"

Sam stopped when she remembered that this man was a superior officer.

Taking a deep breath, she reined in her temper, "After Vietnam, my father pulled away from us, buried himself in his job. Then we lost my mom in a car accident. There was nothing left to keep my family together and I don't want that to happen to Charlie. Jack, he needs you, please don't do this." She didn't say the last words that were on the tip of her tongue, _'I need you.'_

Sighing, she drew another breath, hoping that her words would come out right, "Think about what you want, Jack, but even better think about what Charlie wants." She allowed herself one last look and then she left the room.

_

* * *

When Sam woke in the morning, she was alone, or so she thought. Jack, the man from the night before, sat not far away. She was covered with the blanket and she was warm. The day was already heating up. Turning her head, she could see weak beams of light coming through the cracks in the walls. _

_Sitting up, she looked around, pulled off her hat and scratched her head. She caught his eye as he stared at her head. She smiled back, brushing the sand from the stubble. _

_Covering it again with her hat, she said, "I buzzed it. With the heat and the sand it was too much of a bother to keep any style. This way it's no fuss, no muss. A couple of months before I head home I let it grow again, that way I'm not such a freak when I get home." She paused and the smile vanished, "If I get home."_

"_None of that. Don't talk like that here. I'll get you out, we'll get home." His voice was low, but she could hear his determination. _

_Around them, the men began to move; he moved closer to her, "Stay near me. We won't be able to keep you a secret for long. If you want to keep us all safe, stay close."_

_Sam nodded, he was right. They sat in their corner for most of the day, not doing anything. Every once and a while, the door would open and a guard would wander through the crowd, then grab one of the prisoners. Sometimes they came back, sometimes they didn't._

_Neither of them talked about what they saw; instead they just stared at nothing. _

_Later in the day when the food arrived, she watched him circle the room and return with their rations. They sat shoveling the food into their mouths, not talking. Sam quickly finished her meal and was offered about half of Jack's. She shook her head, "No. You gave me yours last night."_

_Jack held it out, "Take it. You need it more right now. We need you to keep up your strength. Eat it. That's an order, Airmen."_

_Sam studied him. He didn't look like he could afford to miss any meals, but she took the bowl and ate it all before he changed his mind. _

_The next night Sam woke up from a nightmare. Beside her, Jack lay sleeping, his arm around her keeping her warm. He was so close, his breath tickled her neck. She closed her eyes and allowed the rhythmic breathing to calm her. _

_After a moment he spoke, "What was it about?"_

_She tensed. She hadn't realised he was awake. "Your dream, what was it about? Sometimes it helps to talk about it." His voice was quiet, and Sam relaxed against him._

_Somehow, Sam knew that this man never shared his nightmares with anyone, but he was willing to listen to hers. "My dream… I can't really remember. It was all so confusing. I..." her voice broke._

_His arms tightened around her, "It's all right. Nothing will happen to you while I'm here." He stopped for a moment, "Do you have anyone at home, Hansen?"_

"_No, not any more. There was this guy; we were engaged. I broke it off and came here to get away from him." Her voice was quiet. "What about you?"_

"_No, there's no one. I had a wife, but she left me. She didn't want to deal with the secrets any longer. I never made it easy for her. I've done things-horrible things, and she had to live with the silence, even when I came home. The only bright spot was my boy." _

_Sam could hear the pride in his voice. "I'm sorry. Goodnight, Jack. I think I can sleep again now."_

"_'Night, Hansen. I'll watch for a while." Jack felt her relax again and soon she was asleep. He studied her face. He had just told her more about himself than he'd shared with any of the men in his platoon. What was it about her that made him want to talk?_

_He pondered this for a while longer, then got up and moved to the spot on the wall and began scraping._

_Later, Sam opened her eyes. What had woke her up? Turning over, she heard a noise. After a moment, she saw Jack scraping at the wall. _

_It took a while for her to realise what he was doing. She wondered how long he'd been working at it and how close he was to escaping. Would he take her with them? Most importantly, would he let her help now that she knew?_

_She made a noise and caught his eye. He nodded and offered her the tool he was using. Then, he lay down and went to sleep. A few days later that the hole was finished, but it was almost too late._

* * *

After walking the halls of the hospital, Sam had calmed down enough to go get Charlie from her father. One look from Jacob and he could see what she had to hide. Jacob sent Charlie off with a nurse for ice cream, so he could talk to Sam alone.

"Are you all right?" He reached out his hand to her. "How is O'Neill? I can imagine he can be a hard man. Remember, he's just been through hell, only to find the world he fought hard to return to was gone. He may have been divorced from Sara but they were together for a very long time."

"I know that, Dad," Sam said, squeezing his hand.

"No matter how much he pushes the two of you away, you can't let him retreat. Don't let him draw himself too deeply inside, but watch out for Charlie. O'Neill will have good days, bad days, and worse."

Sam turned to leave, "I won't let the same thing happen to this family that happened to ours. Charlie deserves so much better than we had."

"I know, Sammie. I would take it all back in an instant if I could, but I can't. I can only try to make it up to you." his voice was so sad as he remembered his mistakes.

Sam smiled, "You have, Dad. I love you."

"I love you too, Sam. Don't be afraid to love him, both of you. He needs that most of all, he needs both of you."

Sam turned away, ashamed that her father knew her secret. A thousand excuses and explanations raced through her mind, but before she could open her mouth, he continued, "I'm not accusing or reprimanding you. I know you have a big heart and I can see it in your face when you talk about both O'Neill and Charlie. Just be careful. You never talked about what happened in Iraq… but he was there, wasn't he? I've heard your nightmares, Sam. You call out for Jack."

Not knowing how to respond, she changed the subject, and Jacob let it go.

"I'll be back tomorrow. They said we can take him home. We have to get the house ready for him. Do you want us to come before or after we discharge O'Neill?"

"After. I want to meet this man who has you seeing red." Jacob smiled as he spoke to show he was amused.

"We'll do that. When do you get out of here?" Sam asked, remembering that the doctors were supposed to decide earlier today.

"Next week, maybe Tuesday." He offered her his cheek. Giving him one last smile, she headed off to find Charlie.

* * *

So if you want more you need to tell me. I love to open my email account and see your reviews. Make me smile, please.**;)**

~Kelleth~


	5. Falling For You 5

**Author's Note**: Here we are again. Wow I'm consistent. I didn't have time to go through the review this morning. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and asked for more. Also thank you to everyone who helped me make this story what it is-great. If you want me to keep it up keep letting me know how much you like it. Also due to time constraints I may not be able to answer all reviews I will try but I can't make any promises.

Some on wanted to have a Jack and Jake scene well here you go...

* * *

Jacob watched her go, deciding he needed to meet this man alone, without Sam. He had seen Sam in "love" before, but not like this. Something about this O'Neill called to a part of her usually locked away.

Waiting an hour to make sure Sam wasn't coming back, he slipped from the bed. Grabbing his robe and slippers, he left the room and proceeded to Colonel O'Neill's room, having obtained the room number earlier from Charlie.

Ten minutes later, he was on the correct floor at the proper door. O'Neill lay on the bed, his head facing way from the door. His fist lay on top of the blankets. Jacob could see it tightening and loosening again as he fought his emotions, the memories, and the pain.

"Just let it out, son. It hurts way more to fight it," Jacob said, coming into the room.

Surprised to hear another voice, Jack turned to see who it was. He had been staring at the wall trying to figure out what he was feeling. "Get out. Don't know who you are but you know nothing about me. I'm not your son." He turned his face back to the wall, hoping the man would leave.

"I can't do that. I have something to say to you," He waited to give the Colonel time to respond, when he didn't, Jacob continued, "Sam is my daughter and I love Charlie like my own grandson. Jacob Carter is my name. You're Colonel Jonathan O'Neill, but to your friends, you're Jack." He waited to see if this would get any rise out of the man on the bed.

"Carter?" Jack sighed, "As in Smiley Sam?" It was almost a sneer, but not quite.

Jacob laughed. He liked that, but he knew Sam wouldn't.

The Colonel rubbed his eyes. That would make this man the General. He swallowed, realizing he had just mouthed off to a two-star general. He sat up in his bed and tried to sit at attention, since he could not stand.

Watching the man's body language, he knew what had just happened. "At ease, Colonel. I understand better than you think. If you are anything like me you won't like those head-shrinkers. If you want someone to talk, to just call me. Sam has my number. Locking it all away won't help anyone. It will only destroy you, Charlie, and Sam."

"Sam, what does she have to do with this?" Jack asked, unsure of where the conversation was going now.

"She loves Charlie, very much. It's because of that love that she is very empathic to his moods; she feels his pain as her own. So don't go into that darkness by locking your feelings away. I did that, and I dragged my family into my darkness because of it. Don't make the same mistakes I made."

Jack watched this man, and made a decision. "Does it get any better? The loss, the regret and self loathing about the man you had to become to get out of there, to survive?" Jack looked directly at the older man, who returned his gaze unflinchingly.

Sitting down beside the bed, he rested his hand on Jack's shoulder, "Yes and no. Some days you forget all about it, but then something will remind you, like a smell or noise. All the pain and horror comes rushing back. The only way to fight it, is to pick up something you love, like your little boy, and hold him tight. Remember what is good in the world. Make new sweet memories. Live your life every day. You do that, and those men who put you through hell lose, and you win. Live your life, Jack. Don't waste it like I did." Jacob squeezed his shoulder and then left him alone with his thoughts.

* * *

Jack listened to the other man's footsteps recede as he thought about what Jacob had said. They were soldiers and they knew that when they left their families for eighteen months, their families wouldn't be the same when they returned. Children got taller, wives' hair color changed, they gained or lost weight, life moved on while they were doing their duty.

Jack just never expected it to be turned upside down. Sara had left him, but he never expected her to die. He always expected to be the one who would die. In fact, he prepared for it.

Charlie had been the only thing that kept him going, pushing him to live, to escape, especially once Hansen escaped. He had made the choice to let her go and allow her to escape without him. He just didn't think it would take them twelve more months to find him again and bring him home.

This was supposed to be his last tour before he got out of that shadowy world. There had even been a place at the Academy waiting for him, teaching battle strategy and history. After all, he had a Master's in history. Now all his plans and dreams had been for nothing. Sara was gone, leaving him and Charlie alone with the smiley Captain Sam.

He wanted to hate her, but he couldn't. She had given Charlie something he so desperately needed: stability and a home, when his was ripped away from him. No, Jack couldn't hate her and he accepted her place for Charlie, but that would be all. She would never have a place in his life beyond Charlie's guardian, the place where Sara once had been.

"Sara," he breathed. Tears leaked out his eyes as he fought to hold them back. All the pain and fear rushed over him. He closed his eyes to fight the visions flashing before him and the memories of sensations rushing through his body. Rolling over, he pushed his face into the soft clean pillow to muffle the noise. One thing he had learned in hell is that any sign of weakness could get you killed by the inmates and guards.

_

* * *

Maybe it was the excitement of getting out, or maybe they just weren't as vigilant as they had been. The daily ration arrived, and that was when they let their guard down. Sam offered to go and get the food and he let her. She moved swiftly across the room and filled the bowls._

_On the way back, she mixed with the crowd and he lost sight of her. There was a prickle on the back of Jack's neck. Enough men moved and he saw the Lieutenant cornered by Nelson. She had dropped the bowls and was trying to fight him off. She was doing a pretty good job, but the other man was stronger and had more experience. _

_Everything after that happened so fast, none of them could tell what had just happened. Nelson lay on the ground, dead and Sam was breathing heavily as she met Jack's eye. She looked up at him to show that she was not afraid of him or what he had done._

_All of the prisoners had seen what happened, but they turned back to their food as though this was a common occurrence. And it was, just not usually over another soldier. More often than not, it was over a blanket or food. _

_Jack pulled Sam back to their space and sat her down. The eyes of some of the prisoners were on them. They now knew she was a woman. In the scuffle with Nelson, he had ripped her shirt, exposing her bra for everyone to see._

_While Jack tended to Sam, he kept watch, his eyes more alert than ever. All it took was one man to get the courage and then they would be in trouble. He wished he had a weapon of any kind._

_Shrugging out of his shirt, Jack handed it to the Lieutenant. He cupped her face, "Are you all right? Did he hurt you?" On the side of her face was a red mark, where Nelson must have struck her._

_Taking a shuddering breath, she said, "No, not really. I was just surprised, that's all. I didn't think anyone knew, but he did. He was trying..." she closed her eyes and fought the hysteria that threatened to escape._

"_Well, we're lucky those blocks are free. As soon as everyone is still tonight, we move." He looked at her, trying to decide if she was really okay._

_Taking one last shaky breath, she looked right at him. "I'll be fine. You can count on me." Her resolve tightened and the trembling woman was gone, replaced by the solider._

_Studying her for another moment, he decided that she would be all right. He said nothing but nodded his agreement.

* * *

_

A gentle hand fell on his shoulder, startling him from the memory, "Sir… Jack, are you in pain? Should I get the nurse?"

Still mashed into the pillow, he shook his head. It was her, Sam, but he couldn't help enjoying her hand on his shoulder. It had been so long since someone had touched him, just to touch him, let alone a woman.

There had been that Hansen who had slept beside him for warmth and protection, but that had been it and she... He didn't know what she was to him. Everything was all mixed up. Once he got out of here, he would have to find her and sort it all out, but he couldn't help enjoying Sam's touch. Something about her was so familiar and comforting.

Her hand stayed there as she spoke, traveling over his shoulders, trying to offer some comfort. "I just wanted to apologize for earlier. I was harsh with you. I just don't want Charlie to go through what I went through." She waited for him to say something, but the only sound in the room was their breathing.

Realising what she was doing with her hand, Sam pulled it back, and closed her eyes. This was so hard, so much harder than she thought it would be. She wanted to hold him, to comfort him, but she couldn't; he wasn't hers to hold, not here in the light.

To him, she was a stranger and she had made the choice to remain that way. The few weeks she had spent with him in that small dirty room had been enough for her to see the man he was, and for him to learn enough about her.

Funny things happen when you are a prisoner. She thought he just might love her too. In that dark, dank world, everything got mixed up, and even though you tried to tell yourself that this wasn't what life would be in the real world, you wanted the relationships you forged there to last.

Opening her eyes, she turned to leave, but she touched his shoulder one last time and squeezed, "I'll leave you now. We'll be back tomorrow to bring you home. Charlie is spending the night with a friend. I thought he needed some time away from all this, to be a little boy. We'll come by around noon to get you."

"Sam, I-" He rolled over and grabbed her hand. "You were right. I can't promise I won't pull away and hide. I ..." He swallowed, "It wasn't pretty there. They did things, I did things. I have to come to grips with the man I had to be to survive."

Sam smiled that smile again and it banished some of the darkness and pulled him into the light. "I'll see you after lunch tomorrow."

She tried to walk away, but he held onto her hand. Sam looked back and he was studying her.

Before she could tell him what he wanted to know, he dropped her hand as though it burned him and rolled back to the wall, confused at the feelings she created in him. They were the same feelings he had for Lieutenant Hansen he had watched over in hell.

He didn't turn around until he was sure that she was gone. Even then, he stared at the place where she had stood.

That night, he dreamed of the Lieutenant, and how he had made the choice that she couldn't make. Then things got mixed up and she became Sam. He dreamed of falling in more ways than one.

* * *

There you have it one more chapter bits the dust. Hope you will let me know what you think... ~Kelleth~


	6. Falling For You 6

**Author's Note: **I would love to post this whole story at once but then you would all have to wait a long time for the next one and you would hate me anyway. I hope to be able to post three a week with a bonus if you guys keep reviewing. It will also depend on my betas schedule.

Oh and I have no military experience or anything like it. Any errors in that department are mine. If you know how things really works let me know and I will fix them.

To my anonymous reviewers: **Esther Koch ()** Thank you reading my stories. I was going to tell you where to find the "Grace" one but since I got a review from "Wishes" I see that you found it. I'm glad you like them, that is why I write. To put some happy endings where there should have been in the first place. As for this story it is done. I have written all 21 chapters. So I should be able to post regularly. ** dp ()** Thank you and your welcome. **kinnik72 ()** Thank you to you as well.

That is all I have to say for now. On with the show...

* * *

When Sam arrived the next day, she wasn't sure who she would find, so she took Charlie to her father before going to see Jack. When she entered the room he was sitting up in bed, picking at his lunch.

Dropping his fork, he smiled at her, the first real smile she had seen from him since he arrived here. In the prison, he had smiled that same smile. It had told her they would make it, and it gave her hope. Seeing it today gave her hope once more.

Jack looked around her, "Where's Charlie?"

Suddenly, Sam felt a little sheepish, "I left him with Dad. I thought I would get the paperwork out of the way and then we could all go for lunch. My father wants to meet you."

The smile was back. Studying her, Jack tried to decide if she knew about Jacob's late night visit. Turning back to his unappetizing meal he said, "I'd like that. Do you have some clothes for me?"

Sam lifted the bag to show him she had. "Why don't you get dressed while I finish the paperwork. I'll be back in about five minutes."

* * *

Jack watched her leave the room. They were back, those feelings that seemed to flood him when she walked into the room and smiled at him. She had him feeling things he really didn't want to feel, not yet. Not until he found Hansen and talked to her. He needed to know if what they shared was real or if it was only real in the dark. Shaking his head, he opened the bag and pulled the curtain for privacy while he dressed.

When Sam came back, he was ready and together they headed off to find Charlie and Jacob.

When Sam and Jack walked into Jacob's room, neither man gave a sign they had already met. It seemed Jacob didn't want Sam to know about his wanderings and Jack wasn't about to rat him out.

The four of them ate the bad cafeteria food, but everyone pretended it was delicious. While Sam cleared away the plates, Jacob asked, "So what are the two of you doing about living arrangements? Sam, you sold Sara's house. That makes Jack homeless. "

Sam looked at Jack. This was something they both hadn't wanted to talk about. They had been hoping it would magically resolve itself. "We don't know. It hasn't been discussed yet, why?" Sam asked her dad, nicely, but her eyes were telling him to butt out.

Holding up his hands, he said, "Hey, don't shoot the messenger. I was just wondering. Jack can have my room in your house if he needs it, for a little while, but the two of you will need to figure out some other solution from there. There is another bedroom but if Jack actually lives there it might cause other problems." He nodded to Charlie who had chosen his piece of pie as well as one for him father and was coming back over to the table.

Charlie arrived drawing the scrutiny from Jack and Sam's living arrangements. Putting down the pie, Charlie asked, "When are you coming home, Grandpa? I have a baseball game on Friday. Dad, you'll come, too, won't you? I can't wait for you to see me play!" The boy took his father's hand.

"I'll be there, son, and we'll bring Grandpa Jake if we can." Jack wrapped his arms around his son, feeling as though he might belong here, with them.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Jack returned to the house Sam had bought. He sat in her car and stared at the house. It was the one he had always wanted to buy. When he and Sara divorced he had put an offer on this same house but he was shipped out before he could finalize the paper work and the deal fell through. It was nothing like the home he had shared with Sara, but it wasn't their home any longer; this one belonged to Sam and Charlie.

He wanted to find a hole to hide in until the rush of emotions was over, but he had nowhere to go; this was not his home, this was no longer his life. Sam's voice broke into his panic, "Jack, this is Dad's room. You can sleep here for now." She led him down the hall and opened a door.

Like a robot, Jack walked into the room and looked around. He was barely holding himself together, Sam touched his shoulder. "Maybe you should rest. I'll call you when dinner is ready."

Jack nodded and she closed the door behind her. Dropping to the bed, he covered his face with his hands. Was this what it would always be like, feeling like his son was a stranger and he was interloping on his life? Sam couldn't be kinder to him, but he felt as though he should just walk out the door and never come back.

Small footsteps were heard, "Dad, are you all right? Sam said you were in here and that I should leave you alone for a while."

He stopped, waiting for his father to agree or disagree. When his father said nothing he continued, "Grandpa Jake says you're lost and confused and I can help you. I love you, Dad and I missed you. If you feel better later, can we play catch? We haven't done that in a while. I'm much better than I was when you left. Sam's helped me a lot. I can hit now, I have three home runs."

He rocked back on his heels while he waited for an answer, just like Grandpa Jake told him to, but the answer didn't come. Charlie remembered that it would take time, but he had to keep asking and not leave his father alone too much.

Closing the door, he said, "I missed you, Dad. I missed playing catch. I love you and I hope you feel better soon." The door closed with a click. Silence ensued.

His son's words ran over and over in his mind, mixing with Sam's and Jacob's. Jack was wrong, so very wrong. His son still needed him, he was his father. He could walk out on Charlie but that would hurt him far more than anything else he could do. His life wasn't over. Sam and her father were right. Charlie needed him, as his father.

Pulling himself together, he rose from the bed and grabbed his baseball mitt from where Charlie had left it. Opening the door he called, "Charlie, I just need to find some shoes and I'll meet you in the backyard in ten minutes."

He stood there in the hallway, unsure where to go. Hearing Jack outside her door, Sam came out of her room. "All your things are still in the basement with Sara's things. I didn't feel right getting rid of anything. I just boxed it all up and I thought one day Charlie could go through it with me."

She turned to re-enter her room, when he spoke, "Thank you." His voice was so quiet she almost didn't hear him.

Turning around she met his gaze, she could tell that he had been crying. His emotions were laid bare in his deep brown eyes. She saw grief and pain, but for the first time, there was hope.

She couldn't help but smile. Everything was going to be all right.

* * *

After a few heartbeats, Sam knew she had to break this spell they had woven. If they stayed here like this, she would do something stupid. "Charlie's waiting."

Jack smiled back. "I'd better go then," he said. He took two steps and stopped. "I'll need to go through Sara's things. I don't think I can do it alone."

Nodding, she said, "Just let me know when and I'll help you. Everything is in the basement and it's all labeled. I have some work I need to finish." Sam ducked back into her room to escape the rush of emotions that swirled between them.

Leaning against the closed door, she chastised herself. This was going to be much harder than she thought. O'Neill was such a complex man, and he pulled her to places she hadn't wanted to go since Jonas Hansen. She hoped that it wouldn't end the same way. No, it wouldn't; Jonas and Jack were two very different men.

With a heavy sigh, she crossed over to her laptop to wake it up. She checked the programs she was running to see if it was done. She wondered if the General had been able to get her transferred yet. Catherine had fought to keep her there, saying she was needed by the program and her father. There was Charlie, and she couldn't just leave him or ask him to move. Not now that he had just gotten his father back in his life.

Catherine Langford was trying to locate some archaeologist she thought might be able to decipher the hieroglyphs on the capstone. The man was considered a bit of a nut, but somehow Catherine was usually right about these things. The answering machine button blinked at her. Had she missed the other woman's call?

Pushing the message playback button, she heard Catherine's voice and the excitement in it, "I found him. I'll talk to him tomorrow. I hope he will accept my offer to join us. If he does, we should be there by the end of the week, maybe sooner than that. How are Charlie and his father? Call if you need to talk."

Smiling at Catherine's joy, she went back to the window. Jack had found his shoes and was now out in the backyard with Charlie. Father and son were playing catch. They both looked so happy. If only it would last.

Resting her head against the window, she let the memories come. Every once in a while she had to remember or they would paralyze her.

_

* * *

The day passed slowly, and Sam was never far from Jack. When the lights went out and the hush fell, both she and Jack waited for the attack, but it never came. _

_Soon, the dark room filled with the varied pitch of the men's snores. Still, they waited. Another hour passed and finally Jack nodded to her._

_No words were needed as they pushed the three blocks out of the wall and onto the sand outside. Sam was about to enter the hole when she turned to Jack. "I wanted to thank you, for before. I don't think I would have made it without you."_

"_Yes, you would have. You're strong. You would have been fine," He motioned for her to go through the tunnel and then looked around to see if anyone had noticed._

"_I have to do this, just in case we don't make it," Leaning forward, she kissed him softly on the lips whispering, "I think I love you." And then she was though the hole without another word._

_Jack stared at the void for a moment and then followed. He wasn't sure how he felt about the young woman, but he was sure that he felt more than just friendship. What it was would have to wait for them to reach stateside. If and when they got back he would explain it all to her and he hoped she would understand._

_They ran across the sand, uncertain of what direction they were running in. Once they were out of the reach of the lights, they circled around to the place where the trucks were parked. Jack chose the newest looking truck and siphoned the gas from the other trucks to top off the tank. Sam lifted the hood of the other trucks and disabled each of them. _

_All this took less than five minutes, but it was still too long. A guard discovered them, and again, Jack killed a man but not before he shouted._

_Grabbing the weapon, Jack yelled at Sam to hot wire the truck. To Sam, it seemed like forever before the truck let out a rumbling noise and started to move. She was at the wheel and called for Jack to get on. _

_Slowly, it seemed that the truck began to pick up speed. Leaning out the window she yelled for Jack to get moving, but he stayed where he was to cover their escape. Then suddenly he turned and began running. He was alongside the truck. Sam grabbed his hand to pull him up into the cab with her._

_Bullets flew around them and one struck Jack in the arm. All of his strength was lost and he let go with that hand. Sam let go of the wheel and allowed the truck to drive over the flat desert. She had to get him into the truck. Leaning out the window, she tried to pull him inside with her._

_Jack could see that he had to let go or else she would fall with him. She could see the decision in his eyes. "No, Jack, don't let go. I can hold on, please." She tried to find the strength to pull him up. She couldn't let him go; not now, not when they were so close to being safe._

_Then, somewhere, she found the strength to pull him up, enough to get his feet under him and he climbed into the cab. Sam moved over, letting him take the wheel, while she looked at the wound on his right shoulder. Tearing up her ripped shirt, she bandaged the wound, happy to see it was only a flesh wound. She really didn't want to dig a bullet out of him._

_They had no idea where they were, but they headed toward Kuwait and hoped they would get close enough before the gas ran out. After a while, Sam took the wheel and Jack lay down. He was losing blood, maybe too much. She needed to treat the wound, but they needed more distance between them and the prison first. _

_Using the stars, Jack gave her a direction to go. Turning the truck in the direction he pointed to, Sam hoped they could reach safety in time._

* * *

That night, they all ate their first good meal together. The three of them gathered around the table, eating chow mien and other dishes. Charlie was trying to use chop sticks, but most of his food ended up back on the plate or in his lap.

After a while, Charlie asked, "Dad, are you really coming to my game?"

Pausing with a bite halfway to his mouth, Jack answered, "Yes, Charlie, I am. Nothing can stop me. I'm on medical leave for a while. I'll go back to work, but it won't be for a while."

Relaxing, the boy picked up a fork, "Good. We're playing the best team in the league. It's going to be a tough game. I'm glad you'll be there to see me play first base. The coach said I can try."

Jack smiled at his son and squeezed his shoulder, "You'll do fine."

He looked across and met Sam's gaze. She smiled at him and nodded. Jack's stomach dropped and something rushed over him that he didn't understand. Who was this woman and why could she do that to him with just a smile?

Turning away, he continued to eat his food, wondering if he was really falling for Smiley Sam.

* * *

There is another one done. More on Friday. If you leave a review you might get one on Sunday if not see you Monday.....


	7. Falling For You 7

**Author's Note: **Back again. Here is the next chapter . Here is the deal. If enough of you want another chapter on (chapter 8) Sunday and on (chapter 9) Tuesday. If not I will post (Chapter 8)Monday. So let me know, its up to you guys....

To my anonymous reviewers:** marinrobin () **there were quite a few _soliders_ thank you for pointing it out. I changes all the ones I could find anddI double checked this chapter. I will be more conscious of it in the future. I hope this one is better. **sgc126 () **Thank you here is more, just for you and everyone else who reviewed. **dp ()** Here is your more.** kinnik72 () **Yes, my other stories are here but only the complete ones and this one. I only post one story at a time unless it is a different fandom. If you go to my profile you will find all of them. I have five other SG-1 stories and a few others as well. **yol() ** Why doesn't she tell him? She's scared at what he will think. I'm not saying its rational but that is how she feels. Also a more detailed explaination is coming. Soon.

* * *

After dinner, Charlie was sent upstairs while Jack and Sam cleared away the dishes. Sam was in the dinning room when the phone rang. Not really thinking about it, Jack picked up the phone, "Hello?"

The voice on the other end of the line demanded, "Who is this and where's Samantha?"

Not liking the other man's tone, he answered smartly, "She's a little busy right now. Name's _Colonel_ Jack O'Neill. Who's this?" His voice was joyful, but it also had an edge to it, not giving the caller an inch.

"Jonas Hansen, Samantha's_ fiancé_. Get her on this phone now." Jonas demanded, getting more agitated.

Jack looked over at Sam. He could see the fear in her eyes, even though she tried to hide it. "No, I don't think so. She doesn't want to talk to you."

Hansen's voice came back in the form of a sneer, "You tell her that she's mine. Not even another man will get in my way. I don't go away that easily," The phone was slammed down.

Hanging up the phone, Jack asked, "Care to explain that? He said he's your fiancé."

Sam didn't meet Jack's eyes, "He was but that was a long time ago. I broke it off before I went to Iraq. Jonas wasn't the man I thought he was. He shipped out a few months after me and has been calling me since he got back," Sam unconsciously rubbed the scar he had left on her arm.

Jack watched her trying to find …what he didn't know. He'd heard those same words before. He almost had it but the memory fled out of reach. It was the second time that she had tugged at this memory.

Reaching out, he stilled her hand, studying the mark, his eyes asking a question she didn't want to answer, "If he becomes a problem let me know. I don't want anything to happen to you." He turned to leave but paused, "Or I can teach you a few things." His smile wasn't a happy one, "Just in case."

His voice chilled her, but she knew it wasn't directed at her. Reaching out she touched his shoulder to show that she wasn't afraid of him. "I'll think about it. I'm already upgrading my hand to hand combat to level three."

"Really? Why?" he asked curious to why an astrophysicist would take hand to hand combat classes.

Shrugging she said, "There's an assignment I want and to get it I need to be ready for anything," Sam lied, well partly lied. That was only one reason she was taking the extra training. She was afraid of what Jonas might do not only to her but Charlie as well.

Jack frowned, "Where are you stationed again?"

"NORAD, I do work with Deep Space Radar Telemetry, but sometimes they need to send us places..." she faltered under his scrutiny, knowing he wasn't buying any of this.

Watching her reactions as she spoke, he was sure she wasn't telling him the whole truth about any of this. It seemed that she was being courted by the shadow world he wanted to escape. He could tell a cover story when he heard it. Spec-ops and black-ops did things to people, horrible things; he wasn't going to stand by and let it destroy Smiley Sam.

She turned to leave, but he caught her arm as she went past him. Swallowing, he said, "Sam, whatever you're thinking, that world isn't what you think. It eats you up inside. Don't do it."

Turning toward him, "Don't worry. It's not what you think. I'll be fine. I have some work to do before I can go to bed. 'Night Jack," she said as she lifted his hand from her arm and squeezed it before leaving him in the kitchen.

Jack watched her go, wishing he wasn't feeling such dread.

* * *

_The trip across the desert was rough. The road, if you could call it that, was pitted with both small and large pot holes. Sam had to keep her whole attention on the road if she didn't want to break an axle._

_Beside her, Jack had passed out with his head in her lap. She knew he was alive because she could still feel his breath on her leg. Taking a quick look at the bandage she had wrapped around his wound, she could see that blood had soaked through it. She hoped that he wouldn't bleed to death, and was glad she had taken the medic training course. She hoped there were supplies in the truck that she could use to help him._

_Panic threatened to choke her, but she stamped it down. He was not going to die; she would find a way to stop the bleeding. She had to stop it. He was alive and so was she. There was hope and until they were both locked up once again, they were all right._

_Sam looked down at the gas gauge. They were running out of fuel and she had no idea how close they were to the border. Neither of them knew where they were in Iraq. They had hoped that they were close to Kuwait, but since they had been driving for hours, it didn't seem likely._

_In the distance, Sam saw a collection of ramshackle buildings. Hoping they had just enough luck and fuel to reach them, Sam pushed the gas pedal down and prayed. It was something she had not done in a very long time._

_The truck lurched to a stop; Sam waited to see if anyone would come out and see who had arrived. The village was quiet. No one was there, and from the looks of it there hadn't been for a long time._

_Laying him down, she said, "Jack, you rest. I'm going to look and see if we have anything useful in this truck or these buildings. You need water and so do I." Climbing from the truck, she had no idea if Jack even heard her._

_Earlier, she had searched the cab and found a small amount of water which they had tried to ration, but it eventually ran out. Climbing out of the cab, she headed for the closest building, hoping to find shelter or anything useful. She located the village well but is was dry, probably the reason the village was abandoned.  
_

_The village had been thoroughly picked over and there was nothing left. Even some of the bricks had been taken. Choosing the best house for their camp, she moved to the back of the truck hoping to find something to help them in there._

_She opened the canvas and found supplies, but not what she hoped. Boxes of weapons and other things filled the truck. Still not giving up hope, Sam shifted the heavy boxes around, thinking there might be other things behind them._

_Near the back, she found a small med kit, a few more bottles of water and dried food. Best of all, at the bottom of the box, was a radio. She wasn't sure if it worked, but she might be able to do something with it. Back in the hovel, she cleared a space, laying out the blankets._

_Leaving the supplies, she went back to the front of the truck. Jack was still unconscious, but using some to the water, she roused him. "Hey, wake up. I want to get you to the shelter. I'll be able to look after your wound there."_

_He rolled and got his feet under him. Sam helped him out of the truck and they moved to the house. She helped him climb inside and settled him on the blankets. Removing his shirt, she studied the wounds, wishing she knew more about what to do in situations like this._

_Using the supplies, she treated the wound to the best of her abilities. Jack passed out sometime during her sewing it up. Curling up next to him, she slept, hoping that he would be all right. _

_With that last thought, she fell into an exhausted sleep._

_

* * *

_

Two days later, they went to Charlie's ball game and they saw him hit his fifth home run, winning the game. Both he and Sam raced to hug Charlie at the end of the game.

The boy jumped into his dad's arms and Sam hugged them both. They stayed that way for a moment, until Sam stepped back, embarrassed by her actions. "I have to go. There are some things I need to do at work. I won't be home for dinner."

With that she fled. Jack watched her go, wondering what was happening to him. The whole time he'd spent in that hole in Iraq after Hansen had got out, he'd planned on finding her and talking to her, but since he met Sam, he hadn't done any of that.

Sam made him feel things he wasn't ready to feel, the same way Hansen had done, but how could that be? Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to Charlie, who was talking with his friends. They were making a plan to go out for ice cream.

Charlie pulled at his hand, "Come on, Dad, they're going for ice cream. Can we go, too, please?" He dropped Jack's hand and ran toward the jeep.

Jack stood there for a moment longer watching Sam disappear across the field and then hurried to catch up with his son. Throwing his arm around Charlie he said, "What flavor did you want?"

"Chocolate and Tiger Tiger. Hurry up. I don't want to miss the other boys," Charlie broke into a run.

Jack watched his son go, enjoying his happiness.

* * *

That night, Sam stood on the steps, unsure of what to do. Fatigue washed over her and she just wanted to climb into bed. She had spent the day arguing with General West about the future of this program. He wanted to mothball it and shove it all back into the drawer where it had been found.

She took a few steps toward her room, when Charlie came out of his, "Sam, are you going to read to me? We haven't done that for a while."

Turning, she looked at the boy silhouetted in the door way and smiled, "I could do that. Why don't you get your pajamas on while I change my clothes? Come to my room in about five minutes."

The smile that lit up Charlie's face made it all worthwhile. The tiredness receded and she went to get changed. It was the small moments like this that made her life seem worth while.

A few minutes later, Charlie was curled up with Sam on her bed listening to her read him _The Hobbit_. After a while, Sam looked up and found Jack standing in the doorway, listening to her performance. She smiled at him and patted the bed beside her.

Jack stood there listening to her read, wondering why she wasn't married yet. She was a wonderful mother. The more he watched her, the more he realized that he knew nothing about the woman who had been watching his son.

Charlie knew much more than he did; his son knew how she liked her coffee, what she liked on her pizza, and so much more. He found himself wanting to know more, so much more about this woman. He wasn't sure why, but he needed to know everything about her.

Listening to her read to his son was a place to start. Crossing the room, he sat down beside her on the bed.

* * *

Turning back to the book, Sam continued reading, trying to ignore Jack's close proximity. A little while later, Sam looked over at Charlie and found that he was asleep. Closing the book, she got to her feet and picked up Charlie, finding herself very close to Jack.

They stared at one another for a few minutes. Jack brushed her hands as he took Charlie from her. Something strong pulled at them as their eyes met once more. "Sam," he breathed her name against her lips as they touched gently.

Suddenly, she stepped back. "Put him to bed. I'll clean up in the kitchen."

With that said, she fled to the kitchen running from Jack and the feelings he stirred in her.

Sam leaned against the counter, her breath coming harshly as she tried to slow it. She was getting in way over her head and drowning. She knew that she needed to tell Jack who she was, but how could she? What would he think of her? Would he stop her from seeing Charlie? There were too many questions to upset the status quo.

Quickly she cleared away the supper she hadn't eaten and began to wash the dishes. There was a knock on the door. Still distracted by the kiss, Sam opened the door only to be slammed against the wall. She was given no time to react, before a set of hands grabbed on to her throat....

* * *

I hope you guys don't throw stones. I had to end it there. I will post the next chapter soon. If you leave a review even if it contains rocks, it is more likely to be sooner instead of later....


	8. Falling For You 8

Author's Note: So once again you guys have spoken and I delivered. How can I say no to the forty-five reviews here it is. I know that I missed some of you but I had to get this up before you guys came looking for me.

Thank you to **beautiful-babee** for letting me know what I missed in my quick edit at 5:30 this morning. **:0)**

To my anonymous reviewers: **M ():** I'm glad you liked it. It sat on my computer for a very long time before I figure out what to do with it. **Sg1fan (): **More it is. I got it up as soon as I could for you and everyone else. I hope you like it. **Lostrealm (): **I not sure that he wouldn't have figured it out either under normal circumstances. Remember Sam had a shaved head, people look very different with no hair and hey I'm allowed a plot hole or two. **;) From: Eriya (): **That you here is more. **Kinnik72 (): **Thank you I haven't had one this story and I thought it was time for one. **NightCat (): **You will have to see. As for soon here it is.... **ucrbrat (): **All I can say is thank you. It's no the rest but here is more. **Esther (): **Yep, he was calling her in the first chapter like the psycho he is.

* * *

Jonas Hansen stood in the backyard watching _his_ Samantha kiss another man. She hadn't believed him when he told her that she was his and nothing would change that. Every night since that other man answered Sam's phone he had been waiting to know for sure that Samantha was betraying him and now he had his proof. She was living with this man playing house when she belonged to him. It was time to claim her once and for all.

His hands clenched into fist and he imagined striking the Colonel. This man was dead, he warned him and her, and now it was time to show them he meant business. Tossing the half finished bottle aside he approached the back door. It was time to make Sam pay for breaking his heart.

With a roar of rage, Jonas through open the door and closed his fingers around her neck. He wanted her to hurt as much as he did.

* * *

Sam struggled as Jonas' alcoholic breath washed over her as he pressed against her neck, "You thought you could just leave me and I would let you go. Thought finding a new man would stop my claim on you. You're living here, playing house with that Colonel, trying to forget you're mine, but you are," His hands squeezed a little more, closing off her air supply, "Forever."

Her nails clawed at his hand hoping to find some purchase to make him stop. One hand let go and caressed her cheek, making her shiver. "Does he love you like I do, Sammie?"

Her eyes closed as she fought the terror. Her hands tried to find a way to disarm him like her instructors had taught her, but he countered everything she tried. Her eyes kept moving to the door, hoping Jack would be able to help her, but she was also worried about what would happen if it was Charlie who found her like this.

Finally, his hand slashed across her cheek, cutting her lip. "Look at me when I talk to you. Don't try anything or I will break you. He can't save you from me, Sammie."

Swallowing, she said, "Jonas, leave. It's over and it has been for a very long time. Leave now and I will forget this happened. There is nothing for you here. I don't love you. I'm not sure I really ever did. You need to find someone who loves you."

His arm pressed harder at her neck, "No, you do love me, Samantha. I know you do." He leaned forward, "I'll prove it to you."

* * *

Jack finished getting Charlie settled and went to find Sam. What he found wasn't what he expected, and what he saw chilled his blood. Sam was shoved against the wall, and her lip was bleeding. Tears streaked down her cheeks as she struggled to find a grip to try and escape. For a moment he saw the Lieutenant struggling in the prison cell.

There was a flicker of recognition, but it was buried beneath the rage, he felt at the man who was hurting Sam.

It was all over in a matter of seconds. Jonas lay on the floor, dead, and Sam had sunk to the floor, curled up with her head on her knees.

Jack grabbed the phone and called for the military police to come and get Hansen's body. He only hung up when they assured him they would be there in about five minutes. Crouching down, he lifted Sam's chin to study her face and the cut on her lip.

There was something in her eyes that was so familiar,he almost had it but then Charlie spoke. "Dad, what happened to Sam? Who is that man? Did he hurt her?"

Charlie was about to charge into the room, but his father's voice stopped him, "No, Charlie. Go back to your room. I need to stay here with Sam. I'll be in to talk to you in a few minutes."

Looking at the prone man, and then to his father, "But..."

His father's voice was firm, "No buts; go to bed. I need to talk to Sam. Off to bed." His voice was an order and Charlie knew not to disobey.

Once Charlie was gone, Jack pulled Sam into his arms, needing to feel close to her, but not understanding why. They stayed like that, sharing each other's strength until the doorbell rang and Jack went to let the MP inside.

* * *

After that day, Jack began to pull away from everyone while he tried to sort everything out in his mind. His feelings about Sam were so conflicted and they were mixed in with what he felt about Hansen, making everything murky. Instead of dealing with anything, he just shut himself off from everyone and everything. Sam was getting too close to him, making him feel things. Since he had no idea what to do he just shut down.

This was the way he handled things. It was easier not to feel. There was less pain.

* * *

_The next morning, Sam tried the radio. It didn't seem to work. She knew they should leave, but Jack was in no shape to make the trek. The longer they stayed here, the bigger the chance they would be found by the wrong people. She opened one of the weapons boxes and took out two of the guns. _

_Picking up one of them she studied it. It was different than the weapons she'd been trained to use. It felt strange in her hand. The first time she had an opportunity to use those skills was that day on the convoy, and now it was time to do it again. Shoving the clips into the guns, she got ready to defend herself and Jack._

_The day passed slowly. Jack slept for most of the day and was awakened by nightmares. Sam curled up next to him, speaking to Jack, hoping it would help him sleep. It seemed to work and he fell into what seemed like a deeper sleep. As she lay beside him, she stared at the radio, trying to decide what else she could do to get it to work; their lives might depend on it._

_When she woke the next morning, he was burning with a fever. Using a little bit more of their water, Sam bathed him, hoping to cool him down. Gently, she cupped his cheek, "It will be all right, Colonel. You'll make it, you're strong. Please don't leave me here, you have to fight. Fight for us."_

_Days blended into one another as Sam sat in the hovel beside Jack, trying to make the radio work. Jack's fever broke and he demanded that they start walking. They had to be close to the border, to safety. The longer they stayed here, the more chance they would be caught._

_Sam asked for one more day, and then they would start walking. Deciding time was running out, she tried one last thing and finally got the radio to work. Relief filled her when she heard those voices over the radio. They were going to live. After she contacted the Americans; she wasn't sure they believed her or if they would really come._

* * *

Sam was ready to strangle Jack O'Neill. From the first good days-there had been very few of them; there were mostly worse days. Jack and Sam had chosen an apartment to share. They each took turns staying at the house with Charlie, while the other was at the apartment with her dad. They hadn't wanted to give Charlie the wrong idea about the two of them and their relationship. Since Jack's arrival, her father was doing much better in terms of his illness, and had been declared in remission.

Since Jonas Hansen's attack on Sam, Jack retreated until he was only coming out to eat, and then even that stopped. The day that happened, she received a tearful call from Charlie, "Sam, can you come over. Dad won't come out. He won't even answer me when I try to talk to him through the door. Please come Sam, I'm scared."

The first thing Sam did was to call her dad and ask him to pick up Charlie so she could talk to Jack alone. Then, she finished up what she needed to do before leaving Cheyenne Mountain and heading to the house.

Charlie and Jacob were gone by the time that Sam arrived. On the kitchen table was a note from her father saying that he was taking Charlie to the park for a while, and then taking him home with him.

Sam dropped her briefcase in her room and then knocked on Jack's door. There was no answer, not even when she called his name. Using the match stick resting on the top of the door frame, Sam picked the lock, slowly opening the door. She called his name, "Jack, are you in here?"

As she opened the door, she heard a click of the safety being taken off a gun. Stepping into the room, she came face to face with a 9mm pointed at her. Raising her arms she spoke, "Jack, it's Sam. Charlie was worried and asked me to come and see you. I sent him out with Dad. Put the gun down, I won't hurt you."

She stood there, not moving for a few minutes, waiting for him to lower the gun. He looked up at her and seemed to be searching for something. Whatever it was, he must have found it, because he lowered the gun.

As the gun lowered to his lap Sam let go of the breath she was unaware she was holding. His head dropped as well, as he stared at the gun.

Taking a step closer and kneeling beside him, she reached out to him slowly and touched his knee. "Jack, what's wrong? Can I help you?"

He shook his head, "No one can help me. It's there, it's always there, waiting to pull me in. It hurts so much. Some days I can't stand the pain." His eyes never left the gun.

Sam noticed this and tried to keep her voice steady, "Jack, you don't want to do that. Think about Charlie, what it would do to him. His mother is gone and if he lost you, too, especially this way, it would crush him, Jack." Her hand moved slowly and touched the gun while her other kept contact with his knee, "I want you to let me have it. Let me have it, for Charlie." At first, he fought to keep it, but then suddenly he let go covering his face with his hands.

"Who am I? I'm so confused." His voice was so quiet that she almost could not hear him as he pulled his hands away from his face to study them.

"Jack, what happened?" Sam wanted to do something to help him, but he seemed so shut off from everything. So she waited, hoping that he would answer.

The silence was thick as she waited. She was about to try again, when he said, "I don't know what to do. Nothing makes sense anymore. Sara's gone and Charlie doesn't need me anymore. Where do I belong? My life is no longer mine. It's there, the darkness, inside me. Look what I did to that man, your ex-fiancé. I killed him. I have killed with these hands. How can I be a good parent to Charlie when I can do what I have done? I don't want to deal with the darkness anymore." He stopped and looked at Sam, expecting her to be shocked or afraid, but there was only acceptance in her face. Maybe something else...

* * *

Rocking back on her heels, Sam had no idea what to say. The only thing she had to work with was her own experiences when she returned from Iraq. She knew they were nothing compared to what Jack had gone through before and after she had appeared in their prison.

Reaching up, she pulled his hands from his face and put her hand under his chin, forcing him to look at her. "Jack, you did what you had to do. Come home to us. You're home and Charlie needs you. This is where you belong, with us." Sam stopped at her slip, but he never noticed. Instead, he pulled out of her grip and looked again at his hands.

Reaching out, she took them in her own. "Jack, look at me," she said, waiting until he looked up to meet her eyes, "You are a good man, Jonathan O'Neill. No matter what you do, you are still the man Charlie loves. You are his father and that little boy needs you. You are the only piece of his family left. If you're gone he has no one else…"

His words were soft, "He has you."

"It's not the same and you know it. Charlie loves me but I will never take Sara's place or yours."

He closed his eyes, "I know that, but it's so hard. The memories are there, and at night there are the nightmares. I can't escape them, and you. How can I feel...?" He looked at her and shook his head. "It's all so confusing."

Gently, she cupped his cheek, "It will be all right, Colonel. You'll make it, you're strong. I understand better than you think."

Jack dropped his gaze, only to snap it back up to meet her eyes. "We've met before. You said those words before. When? How?"

She closed her eyes as the fear and memories overwhelmed her.

* * *

Hey, more on Monday, but if you want more after that you will have to let me know. I thought since I didn't kill Pete in wishes like most people wanted me to I would just get rid of Jonas here.


	9. Falling For You 9

**Author's Note**: Here is the next chapter. I'm sorry it is so short but this is where I wanted to end it. This part was done and I wanted to move on with a clean chapter. The next one will be up on Wednesday. I will tell you guys that I know nothing about the military so if I make a mistake let me know and I will fix it. Oh and the last chapter was posted and 5:30 in the morning my time so your guys should be very thankful that one of my kids woke me up.

**Thank you** to my beta **beautiful-babee** who saved me from being lynched by getting me the chapters one time. I would also like to thank** Dreamer One** and the rest of you who looked at this story in it's different stages, you guys helped me to make it what it is.

**To my anonymous reviewers**: **Kamikashi ():** I know who you are that was a sneaky way to get another review in. **Noes (): ** Thank you for the compliment. I'm glad that you like my work. Here is more for you to enjoy. **Esther ():**I'm sorry but I need time to write the next one or you will just have to wait for that. As well my beta does have to eat and sleep sometime. At least you know that I will post again on Wednesday. ** dp ():** Glad it was too bad for you. As for what are they going to do? Just read below and find out.

* * *

_A few hours later, the sound of a helicopter could be heard approaching. Sam woke Jack, "Someone's coming." Once he was awake Sam grabbed the guns she had loaded and checked them over to make sure that she would be ready.  
_

_The radio squawked, "This is Helo One to the Lost Boys, we are approaching you. Please be ready to evac."_

"_We'll be ready__,__" Sam responded. _

_She looked over at Jack, unsure. This was the end of their time together, would it be the same in the real world or would this all end up being a dream, that had no place in the light of morning. Sam reached out and touched Jack's face it was rough with stubble and he looked awful, "Jack, there coming for us. This will all be over soon. I-" she looked away unsure how to tell him how she was feeling._

_He turned his face into it pressing his lips to her palm, "Me too, Sam me too." Then he reached over and grabbed the back of her head and pulled her toward him for a real kiss. When he pulled back he rested his forehead against hers for a moment __as he said, "We'll sort this out when we get state side. Hang in there."_

All Sam could do was stare at him. This was insane she had only known him for two weeks but these emotions that she was feeling was insane, but maybe they weren't because he seemed to feel the same way.

_Seeing that she was distracted, Jack held out his hand, _"_Give me a gun__,__" He demanded__, ignoring the fact that his head still swam. Not just from the kiss he and Sam had just shared but because he was still suffering from the effects of the gunshot wound and resulting fever.  
_

"_Are you strong enough to do this?" Studying him, she tried to decide if he really could do this._

"Hansen_,__ give it to me, now. You'll need my help__,__ if these guys aren't friendly." Sighing__,__ Sam handed him the second gun she __had__ loaded._

_The helicopter passed over them and touched down nearby. Jack pushed Sam out of the hovel, "Get moving. I'll cover you."_

_A second helicopter landed and Iraqi soldiers spilled out of it, shooting at them. Both Sam and Jack returned fire. Sam ran for the helicopter, not looking back, hoping that Jack was behind her._

_Sam clambered on to the helicopter and turned to find Jack. He was making his way to them when he took a hit in the head and went down. She screamed and tried to climb back off the helicopter, but a man grabbed her and held her back, "He's dead. We have to leave him." The Iraqi soldiers received back up and the helicopter was under heavy fire._

_The man who had grabbed her shoved her into her seat. Sam sat back, letting the tears flow as the helicopter lifted off, leaving him behind. She quickly stopped crying, realizing she needed to be strong. Sighing heavily, she looked at the men dressed in black; if she saw them again she didn't think she would recognize them. One of them squeezed her shoulder, "It's all right, we'll get you home. I'm Kawalsky."_

_Sam tried to smile, but it never reached her eyes. Looking back, just once, she realized that she didn't even know his whole name._

_

* * *

_

_Jack felt the bullet graze his head and he went down. He tried to find the strength to get to his feet, but he had none left. From where he was he saw Hansen__ fighting to get to him, calling his name, but she was held back by another soldier. The last thing he remembered were those blue eyes, full of pain, as he fell into blackness._

_

* * *

_

"Sam?" She opened her eyes and met Jack's. "Are you all right?" There was something in her eyes that pulled at his memory. It all tumbled and clicked.

A feeling of déjà vu washed over him and it chilled him to the bone, "You were there; in Iraq with me." Emotions flashed over his face: shock, surprise, and something else that was gone so fast that she couldn't name it. It was replaced by anger.

"Yes, you saved my life. I never knew your name until Charlie showed me your picture months later. It made me sick to think that I was the reason you never saw Sara before she died," Sam closed her eyes as the pain washed over her.

It was a time in her life that she didn't like to think about. How this man had given up his only chance of escape for her. He endured almost twelve more months of captivity. It was her fault that he never made it home in time to say good bye to Sara; worst of all, she loved him.

"You knew who I was this whole time, while you were playing Florence Nightingale? Were Charlie, Sara, and I some sick game to you? That last night in the dark you told me you loved me then again in the ruined village. Then you left me in that hole to die?" His voice was so controlled as he spoke. That chilled her more than if he had yelled.

The lines on his face were so hard and Sam backed away from him. His hands clenched and unclenched. She knew what those hands could do if the occasion called for it. She had seen what he would do to protect those under his care; he had done it for her. She shook her head, "No, it wasn't like that. I tried to get them to go back for you, to find you but they wouldn't."

"_Liar!_" His voice was sharp. "You came home and insinuated yourself with my family. I bet you held Sara's hand while she died and cried. You are one sick lady, Samantha Carter. Get out; get out of my life," he shouted at her.

Sam backed out of the room, still speaking, "No, it wasn't like that at all. I didn't know who you were. They wouldn't look for you. I tried, Kawalsky tried, but they wouldn't listen. I gave up my dreams trying to find you."

But he wasn't listening to anything she said, and when he stood, she ran, closing the door after herself.

* * *

She ran out of the house, bumping into someone on the sidewalk because she couldn't see through her tears. Arms held on to her as they led her to the front step and made her sit.

"Sam, what happened?" She looked up at the sound of a familiar voice.

She tried to smile, "Kawalsky, what are you doing here?"

The Major stared at Sam; he could feel her trembling, "What happened in there? I've never seen you like this. Sam talk to me, maybe I can fix it."

He felt her shake her head, "No, I should have told him who I was. I should have told him that I was the one who left him behind."

It was Kawalsky's turn to be angry. He had seen what trying to find Jack had done to her. He'd been at that hearing when the charges were dropped. He knew it was her father's doing, but he'd never tell Sam that.

The whole mess never should have gone that far anyway. Some General got his medals in a twist when she challenged him about leaving Jack behind. No way was he going to let her blame herself or let Jack do the same.

He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her, "Stop it. You did everything you could. In the end, it was blind luck that they found him when they did. I'll go talk to him."

Taking a deep breath, she nodded and followed him inside. He was about to walk up the stairs, when he paused, "Where's Charlie?"

Rubbing her arms, she said, "With Dad. Jack frightened him and I had Dad take him out. He's staying with Dad for the night.'"

"Stay here. I'll be back. Jack needs to hear something from me." Turning, he headed outside, only to return a few minutes later carrying a large file up the stairs. At the door to the bedroom, he hesitated, "Jack, I'm coming in." Then he opened the door.

* * *

As the door closed behind Sam, Jack thought for a moment as he sat back down on the bed. This was all insane, Sam and Hansen were the same person. How could she have kept something like that from him?

He was stunned at what he had discovered until Kawalsky knocked on the door. The Major didn't wait for a response, before he opened the door. He studied the man for a moment, then called out, "Jack, you in here?" And he stepped inside the room.

Surprised, Jack looked up at the sound of another voice, "Kawalsky? How are you? What are you doing here?"

"Sam called when you got out of the hospital. She thought you'd like to see me. This was the first chance I had to come over. I've been busy with this new assignment," he shrugged. Jack knew what their life was like.

Emotions flitted across Jack's face and Kawalsky wished he could read his CO better, "_Sam_."

Kawalsky frowned at how Jack spit out her name. Before he could say anything, Jack continued speaking, "What game was she playing? I mean, really, how sick can you be?"

Grabbing Jack's shoulders, the other man spoke, "No game, Jack. She really didn't know you were Sara's husband. She called me when she found out who you were--she was devastated. Jack, she tried really hard to get you home even before she knew Charlie was your son."

Jack shook his head, "Yeah sure ya betcha, she did," Jack said, walking away from Kawalsky to the window. He gave no response other than a snort.

"She did, Jack. We both pushed for them to find you, but we had nothing. We didn't know it was you. I was on the chopper that picked her up. All we saw was a man go down. Sam thought you were a Marine. It never occurred to me that you were the man we saw get shot. Jack, you were already presumed dead. You had_ 'died'_ four months before that. I saw you get hit and Cromwell ordered us to leave your body behind."

Softening his tone, "Jack, she was almost court-marshalled because of how hard she pushed to get you out."

Jack spun around to look at his friend, "What?"

"Here's her file. She's one of the officers where I'm stationed. I pulled her file so I could show you. I hoped it wouldn't come to this. Don't give up on her, Jack. She's a wonderful woman. She's great with Charlie. I'm sorry about Sara; I know she meant a lot to you, but she's gone. Sam and Charlie are alive, and so are you; don't trap yourself in the past. Think about that." He turned to leave, "I've been stationed up at Cheyenne Mountain. If you need me, you just have to call. I'm on stand-by for now. Think about what I said. Jack, you need to read it."

He headed out the door, dropping the file onto the bed. Jack watched him go, wondering if he'd done something very stupid.

* * *

Sorry this one is short but I had to end it here. I added somthing bits so if there are any typos let me know and I will fix them up. Talk to you again...


	10. Falling For You 10

**Author's Note: **Well here we are again. We are about half way through this story as there are twenty-one chapters. So there is a little ways to go from here. I have a chapter for Friday and if you want one on Sunday you will have to let me know.

Thank you to **beautiful-babee** for being patient with me when I decided to add a bit to this chapter as well. I thought that Jack need a bit more screen time.

To my anonymous reviewers:** NightCat ();** I agree he is, that is why we love him.** nath452 (): **I didn't think of the last chapter as a cliff hanger but here is the more.

* * *

Kawalsky came downstairs and found Sam putting on her coat. She turned to him, saying, "I have to head to the base. Someone had a breakthrough and I have to go. This might be just what we were waiting for."

Sam was almost out the door when she paused, "Can you call my dad? Let him know what happened. Tell him to take Charlie to school if I'm not there in the morning." She came back into the house and wrote her father's number on a piece of paper and handed it to him.

"That should be fine. Sam you need to talk to him. You can't leave it like this. He needs you, you can't leave him like this." Kawalsky grabbed her arms to try and stop her from leaving.

"I have to go Kawalsky. I can't now do this now. Anyway, he needs some time to cool down," she said, grabbing her keys pulling away from him.

He watched her leave. Then, he picked up the phone and dialed the number on the slip of paper she had given him. He had just hung up the phone when Jack came down the stairs carrying the file. "Sam! Where are you?"

"She's not here, Jack. She had to go back to the base. I just talked to her dad. He'll keep Charlie over night. I wasn't sure what you wanted to do."

"That's fine. It will give me some time to think." He looked down at the file in his hands and then at his friend. "This is real. When I was yelling at her, she said she gave up her dreams to find me. I thought she was being a bit dramatic there."

He swallowed, "It's right here, her failed application to NASA because of an insubordination... a General in the Marines put a letter in the file and they black listed her. She would never have gotten anywhere near a space shuttle, all because she tried to find me." He ran his fingers through his hair.

Emotions swirled around him and he had no idea what to do. He wanted her to come back, but there was still a bit of anger. Why hadn't she told him who she was?

When he realized just who Sam was, all the feeling he had for her merged with the ones he had for the Lieutenant. He didn't know how to handle it because right along with those emotions was guilt. That he could be falling in love again so quickly after losing Sara. She had left him, but that didn't mean that he hadn't hoped that maybe... He didn't even know what he hoped because it no longer mattered. Everything was different, everything had changed, he had changed and now there was Sam.

Turning away from Kawalsky, he stared out the window at the backyard. This was all crazy. "What do I do? I messed it up so badly."

"Well now, I don't know, Jack, but, uh, I guess talk to her." Kawalsky rubbed the back of his neck. "Explain what happened. I'm sure she'll understand. Get this all worked out. Don't do this to her, you two need to talk."

The beeper on his belt buzzed; he picked it up and looked at it. "I just wanted to stop in and say hello. I would like to stay longer but I have to go," he hesitated, not wanting to leave Jack alone.

Not looking away from the window, he said, "I'm fine, Charlie, you can go. I'll call you."

Kawalsky squeezed the other man's shoulder and left him alone with his thoughts.

0o0o0

As Sam drove the steep road up to Cheyenne Mountain Complex, she tried to rein in her emotions. General West was already trying to get her transferred out, so she could be nothing but professional.

Pulling her car into her space, Sam took a quick look in her mirror and touched up her make up before heading into the base.

She stepped off the elevator at Level 21 and was met by the archaeologist, Daniel Jackson. He'd obviously been waiting for her and became very excited. "Captain Carter. I'm so glad that you're finally here. I found something that you'll want to see." he said as he pushed his glasses back up onto his nose.

Unsure what could have him so excited, she motioned for him to lead the way. Daniel was practically bouncing down the hall to the office space he had been given.

On the white board were some of the symbols from the gate. He crossed over to the board. "I've figured it out. These symbols are constellations and using six of them we mark a point in space. There was this newspaper and it had Orion on it and then it all made sense."

The light went on in Sam's mind; this made sense. "And the seventh symbol?" she asked, surprised she hadn't figured this out.

He smiled, "Is the point of origin." Then he showed her the chart she had made of the symbols on the gate. "This is Earth. I want you to go with me when I talk to the General. I have an address I want to dial, but I need authorization."

Staring at the board, she wondered why she wasn't happier about this. With NASA lost to her, this was her new dream: wormholes and traveling to new planets, but her heart wasn't in it. Instead, it was in her house with Jack and Charlie.

* * *

Daniel watched the Captain, unsure of her reaction. He expected more excitement from her. She had been one of the biggest pushes to keep this program open. General West and those like him would have mothballed it long ago, if it weren't for Samantha Carter and Catherine Langford.

Studying the woman, he wondered if there was something wrong. Reaching out, he touched her shoulder and asked her that question.

She jumped as though she had forgotten he was there, and said, "Yes… no. I'm just having problems at home right now. Things are a little crazy."

He touched her shoulder again, "Do you need to talk about it?" he asked, kindly.

Sam looked up into his earnest blue eyes, "Thanks, Daniel, but I'm not sure you can help."

"I can just listen if you like," he said, pulling up another chair and sitting down, "Sometimes, you just need to talk about it. Well, that was what one of my social workers used to say."

He shrugged and motioned for her to have a seat.

She sat for a moment, "It's all very complicated. Someday, maybe, I will tell you about it." Getting to her feet, she tried to leave only to have him stop her.

"Talk to me. Sam, you need to talk to someone. Whatever it is, it's got you tied up in knots. Talk to me, please." His voice was soft and she had no idea what to say.

Looking up, she met his gaze once more, wondering why she couldn't fall for someone like him. Daniel Jackson was open and nothing was hidden from view, but she fell for men like Jack O'Neill and Jonas Hanson. Nodding, she sat down again, telling him the whole story.

Once she was done, Daniel sat back, surprised. What could he tell her? This was very complicated. "I think you need to talk to him. He needs to know everything, he deserves to hear everything. Just tell him what you told me."

Sam got up and this time, he let her.

"How can I? He won't even talk to me. He actually threw me out of my own house." She walked out of the room and paused at the door, "Let's go and see the General and get permission to dial your address."

With a smile on her face that didn't reach her eyes, she led the way out of the room.

* * *

The dialing was a success; the wormhole was established, creating a loud vortex and then settling into a shimmering blue pool. Sam and the others stood in the control room, amazed that it worked. Studying the computer, she couldn't believe they had really made contact with a planet that was light years away.

All around her the people were cheering, Daniel was hugging everyone, shouting, "We did it! It works!"

Sam was very excited, but the problem was, no one knew what was on the other side of the blue pool. The air might not even be breathable; there could be hostile people. There were too many questions and nothing to answer them.

Trying to think of a way to get the information they needed, Sam sat in the control room long after everyone had left and gone out to celebrate. Looking at the empty ring, Sam suddenly got an idea. She should have thought of it earlier. She only hoped that she brought the plans with her.

Heading to her lab, she buried herself in her work and tried to forget all her problems as she built a remote control machine that could communicate with Earth as long as the wormhole was open. This would get her the answers they needed.

It was three o'clock in the morning when she finally finished. Sitting back, she surveyed her work. She was proud of herself and her creation. Rubbing her eyes, she knew that she wouldn't make it to her quarters on base, let alone her apartment. Sitting down at the bench, she laid her head down and drifted off to sleep, hoping tomorrow would be a better day.

* * *

After Kawalsky left, Jack read the file over again, this time much more in depth. Earlier, he had skimmed it to get the general outline of the charges that had been filed against Sam and why. It also included the transcript of the short hearing and a letter from the Marine General in question.

As Jack read the letter, it made him sick to his stomach as he remembered Sam's words. 'I gave up my dreams to find you.' and she had. It didn't matter that there were five more citations praising Captian Samantha Carter; that one black mark was all that was needed to destroy her career. Her push to locate a man that most people felt was dead would have kept her away from the Shuttle for the rest of her life, and kill the possibility of another promotion, ever.

Her words echoed through his head again, 'No, it wasn't like that at all. I didn't know who you were. They wouldn't look for you. I tried, Kawalsky tried, but they wouldn't listen. I gave up my dreams trying to find you.' and she had. Worst of all, he had taken that sacrifice and thrown it back in her face.

Dropping the file on to the coffee table, Jack sat down and rested his head in his hands. Part of him wanted to go off and find her and tell her that he was sorry, but another part was still very angry that she had not told him she was his Lieutenant.

After a while the first voice won, and he got to his feet to go somewhere, do something. He needed to fix this, but he had no idea how. Looking up, his eyes met Sam's in one of the photographs on the wall. She had her arm around Charlie as they both smiled for the camera. They were his life and he needed to fix this, he need Sam she complete him.

She had given his son a home when he had none; there was no way she had done what he said. He would have known that if he had just taken a moment to think about what he was saying. Jack tended to let his anger control his words. His mother had told him that he suffered from 'foot in mouth disease' when he was angry.

Looking around him, he realized that this was Sam's home, the one that she had made for Charlie and that he had thrown her out of it. Everything around him was Sam's. Jack took a deep breath; he needed to get away and think. He needed to figure out what he was going to do and how he was going to apologize.

He was almost out the door when he remembered Charlie. Where was he?

Kawalsky had told him but he hadn't really been paying attendtion. He would start with Jake and then go from there.

"Jake is Charlie with you. Sam and I, we had a fight and I didn't have the chance to ask her. I-" Jack didn't know how to explain about the dark hole he'd fallen into after Jonas Hansen's attack on Sam.

He remembered that night clearly. Sam crying in his arms and the feeling that came with it: that she belonged there more than any woman he had ever held. He recalled letting the MPs in and them taking photographs of the man Jack had killed, Sam's neck, and the purple bruises from Jonas' fingers. Once the MPs had left, Jack had retreated to his room and began to think. He spent the night looking at his hands, remembering what he had done to Jonas, and how he had snapped his neck quickly and without remorse. Even now, he could not be sorry that the man was dead and Sam was safe.

Then, he had remembered the Lieutenant and how he felt about her. Then Sara was thrown into the mix, and Jack no longer understood where he was or what he was doing. These three women he had some sort of feelings for, with only one of them here now. Did that make his feelings right?

The rest of the two weeks were a blur. He knew he had hurt not only Sam, but Charlie as well. He had a lot to make up for, and now was time to start.

* * *

Jacob's voice pulled him back into he present, "Jack are you still there?"

Closing his eyes and breathing deeply and said, "I'm here."

Jacob wondered what had happened between Sam and Jack once he had taken Charlie to the park. From his short conversation with Kawalsky, Jake knew it must have been bad. "I have Charlie here and if Sam's not here in the morning, I'll take him to school." Jake said, looking over at the boy who was watching TV not far away.

"Good, I need some time to think. If you talk to Sam, let her know-" Jack really didn't know what to say. "Let her know I want to talk to her."

Jake smiled, "I can do that. Talk to you later, Jack." The winds were changing and Jake thought that Jack had fallen just as hard as Sam had.

Hanging up the phone, Jack looked around him. He needed to talk to Sam; he dialed her cell phone. It was time to start to make amends. He didn't want to leave it for too long.

It rang once, twice, three times, but there was no answer. He wanted Sam, but he couldn't stay here in her home to wait for her. Opening the front door, he headed into the night, hoping to outrun his guilt. For what, he wasn't sure. There were too many choices.

* * *

Another one bites the dust and another to follow on Friday. I have it in my hot little hand. Let me know what you think. Your reviews make me smile.

~Kelleth~


	11. Falling For You 11

**Author's Note: ** Well here we are again. If you want a bonus Mother's Day chapter you will have to let me know. I don't really have much more to say. Enjoy!!

**To my anonymous reviewers:** **Esther ();** Glad you still like it. As for Sunday we'll have to wait and see. You folks will decide that. Greetz back from Canada.** dp (): **Thank you enjoy this one was well.

* * *

Jack stared at his drink; it sat untouched for hours. With no where else to go he'd wandered in here. Part of him wanted to drink all of it and many more; just drown his sorrows. But another part of him knew that it wouldn't help. Various times in his life he had tried to do just that, and it had only made things worse.

He spun the glass, creating pretty patterns on the bar. He'd been sitting here for hours and was no closer to untangling his emotions. He had loved Sarah but now there was the Lieutenant and Sam, who turned out to be the same person. He had feelings for them … for her. It was all so confusing.

More importantly than that, there was Charlie. He loved Sam as though she was his mother. She had been there for him when there was no one else and he would not interfere with her relationship with him. They needed each other and he needed them.

Digging into his pocket, he pulled out his cell phone. Not thinking about what time it was, he dialed Sam's number again, hoping this time she would pick up.

It rang once, twice, three times, when someone answered, "Hello?" But It wasn't Sam's voice, but a man's.

Anger coursed though him. What had she done, rushed into someone else's arms? Taking a deep breath and reigning in his anger, he asked, "Who is this?"

A loud yawn was accompanied by a tired, "Daniel Jackson. Who are you?" There was a pause, "I don't have a cell phone. Who's is this?" Daniel rubbed his eyes, confused. Why had someone woken him up in the middle of the night to yell at him on a phone that wasn't his?

Jack spoke again, "I thought I was calling Sam Carter's phone. I'm Jack O'Neill, Charlie's father."

"Oh, you," Daniel's voice was sleepy again. "It's Sam's phone. That would make sense. She was upset when she was here earlier. She must have left it. You hurt her you know. All she wanted to do was look after you and Charlie and you spit on her."

Daniel seemed to have forgotten the other man was on the phone. "I should go see if she's still here and give this back to her."

Unable to keep the scorn out of his voice, Jack asked, "And where is _here_? She should be home with Charlie, not out somewhere …doing whatever." Jack didn't know who this man was or what she might be doing with him.

"Uh, the base. Our project had a breakthrough and some of them went out to celebrate. The last I saw of Sam, was she was in the control room. We hit a snag and she wanted to figure out a solution. I'm sure if she's still here, she'd be in her lab. Can I go back to sleep now? It's late …early," he said as he looked at his watch.

Jack couldn't help but smile at the other man's response. The bar was closing around him; he hadn't realized it was that late. "Sure, you go back to sleep," he said. His voice was kinder. He knew somehow that his man was not a threat to him and his feelings for Sam. "If you see Sam, tell her I'm looking for her and she needs to come home for dinner tonight."

"Okay …," a soft snore came over the line, telling Jack that Daniel Jackson was once again asleep. Ending the call, he wondered who this Daniel Jackson was. Could he be an astrophysicist like Sam?

Getting to his feet, Jack decided it was time to go home. There was no way he could get into Cheyenne Mountain at this time of night although he was tempted for a moment to try.

Suddenly very tired, he climbed into his jeep and drove home to his empty house. Maybe it was time they all made a home together. Heading up the stairs to his bed, Jack, wished it wasn't so big and full of memories, but still so empty.

* * *

Two hours later, Daniel woke up with the phone still clutched in his hand. Rubbing his eyes, he wondered if it had all been a dream. Had the man really called to apologize to Sam?

He needed to find Sam and let her know that Jack O'Neill was looking for her and she needed to call him.

Rising from the stool, he pushed away the book he had been reading when he fell asleep. He knew he had marks on his face from where it rested on the pages of the book. He really had to stop doing this. He had a perfectly good apartment in town, as well as quarters on the base. There was no need for him to sleep here in his office.

His theories had proven to be somewhat correct, and there was no more need to prove anything to anyone.

With a sigh, he headed out the door, thinking he needed coffee badly.

* * *

Stumbling into the commissary, Daniel filled himself a cup of coffee. For a few moments he enjoyed the smell and then took a sip.

A few minutes later when he finished that first cup, he began to look around and see who else was here. Sam sat alone in the corner, playing with her food. Pouring himself another cup, and dishing up some breakfast, he crossed the room to where she sat.

"Hi, Sam," he said. "Is this yours?" He placed the phone beside her plate. He motioned to the empty chair across from her. "May, I sit here?"

She looked at the phone, "Yes, this is mine. Where did you find it?"

He shrugged, "I found it in my office when it rang very early this morning. You got a call."

Worry crossed her features, "Who was it?"

Daniel held her gaze, "Jack O'Neill."

"Jack? Was something wrong? Did he say why he called?" She was still pushing the eggs around on the plate.

"No, but he seemed upset that a man answered your phone," he said while scooping up a mouthful of food.

"Really?" Now she was confused. "Why would he do that?"

"Because I think he might have been calling to apologize or something. He said he wanted you to come home for dinner." Picking up his fork, he began to eat, leaving Sam to wonder just what Jack O'Neill wanted.

Neither of them said anything else as they ate. Sam was lost in thought and so Daniel finished eating, leaving Sam alone to think.

At about five, Sam called the house. After a few rings, Charlie answered, "Hello?" There was an excitement in his voice as he spoke.

"Hi, Charlie," Sam said. "How are you?"

Hearing Sam's voice, the excitement increased, "Sam, you need to come home, this is amazing. I've never seen Dad like this, not for a long time. He's laughing. We're making pizzas."

There was a pause while Sam tried the think of a way to explain to Charlie what had happened. Unsure what to tell him, she told him part of the truth. "I just wasn't sure I was welcome. Your dad and I had a fight yesterday and I wasn't sure he wanted to see me."

"I was just calling your cell phone. He told me to call you, he wants you to come. Please."

"Charlie, who's on the phone?" came Jack's voice.

Charlie attempted to cover up the receiver, but Sam could hear everything. "It's Sam, I'm trying to get her to come home and have dinner with us. I told her what you said - that she should be here, too." He sounded a little sheepish.

Sighing, Jack motioned for the boy to give him the phone, but Charlie quickly put it back to his ear, "Dad wants to talk to you, I'll see you when you get here."

There was a pause while the phone was handed over. "Sam, we need to talk. I was wrong to say those things, I'm sorry. Come home, Sam; we need you. Tell me how long you need and we can hold dinner for you. We'll be waiting."

Sam hesitated, unsure. Did she really want this? Did she want to give her heart to this man, to give him the power to shatter her so much more than Jonas Hanson had done? That man had almost destroyed her and she didn't feel a tenth of what she now felt for Jack. If she cut her losses now she might make it out unscathed.

Charlie could be heard in the background, "Dad, is she coming or not? She has to. It won't be the same without her." There was a small amount of fear in Charlie's voice as though he knew her thoughts.

Sighing, Sam gripped the phone tighter, "I'll be there in half an hour. I'll see you all then."

Without waiting for an answer, she hung up the phone.

* * *

There you have it. If you want a chapter on Sunday let me know, if not I will see you Monday. TTFN ~Kelleth~


	12. Falling For You 12

** Author's Note:** Happy Mother's Day to you all. Here is my present to you. It is a nice family moment for the Cater-O'Neill's. The next chapter should be up tomorrow but if I don't have it back in time it will be up on Tuesday. I hope to hear from you guys. I was going to post this tomorrow but this way I can sleep in.

**Thank you** to my Betas **Dreamer One** and **beautiful-babee** for keep this story on an even keel and putting up with my horrible punctuation. Hat's off to KEF for reading it and making sure that I didn't have so many typos.

**To my Anonymous Reviewers**: **Esther ():** Done, Done, Done. **Lynne (): **I will let you know that I usually post Monday, Wednesday and Friday and if enough people ask for it I will post on Sunday. So far I have kept to this schedule and I plan to for the remaining nine chapters. **Angel1964 (): **Here you go you don't have to wait. Enjoy **;0)**

* * *

Jack held onto the phone even after he knew she'd hung up. He hoped she'd forgive him for his outburst. He still had no idea how he felt about Sam. Everything was still jumbled together, and he had no idea how to sort it all out.

He stayed there, staring at nothing until he heard, "Dad, is she coming? You said you were going to apologize."

"Yes," Jack answered his son. "She said in half an hour, so let's get to work. We have to finish dinner." Wrapping his arm around Charlie's shoulders, he added, "What do you want on your pizza?

"What about chocolate ice cream and Fruit Loops?" Charlie asked, grinning at his dad.

"Yuck, you've been watching those Ninja Turtles again. No one in their right mind would eat that, turtle or not." Jack ruffled his son's hair and opened the fridge to gather the pizza toppings.

As Jack watched Charlie build the pizzas, he wanted to go back to his room and continue to hide. But he forced himself to do this for his son, Sam, and himself. He needed to try to keep living; he couldn't spend the rest of his life locked away in that room, all alone.

When the pizzas were placed in the oven, Jack and Charlie sat down to watch the Simpsons while they waited for Sam.

The key turned in the lock and the timer rang almost simultaneously. Charlie sprang for the door while Jack headed for the kitchen to remove the pizzas from the oven. He placed them on the oven and sat there for a moment, unsure what he wanted to do and where he wanted to be. This was going to be a little more difficult that he thought. He gave Charlie a moment alone with Sam and then headed for the entryway.

Seeing his son in Sam's arms, he paused, watching them. She was truly an amazing woman and she loved his son. Could he really have shut her out of their lives?

Somehow she knew he was there and looked up. "Jack!" A strange emotion crossed her face, "I hope I'm not late."

Jack's face was just as unreadable to her, "No, you're right on time." To Charlie he said, "Why don't you set the table. Sam and I have some things to talk about."

Charlie bounded away but paused in the door, "You're not going to fight, are you? I don't want you to fight." His face was full of fear. He was afraid he might lose Sam, as well as his mother.

The look on Charlie's face chilled him to the bone. How could he have been so wrapped up within himself that he never noticed the damage he was doing to his son? "No one is leaving you, Charlie, not now, not ever. Sam and I need to talk, that's all."

The boy still hesitated, looking at Sam for reassurance. "It's fine, Charlie," she said. "I'm not going anywhere. We'll all eat together."

Still unsure, Charlie left the room. The two adults watched him go, both of them lost in their own thoughts. It was only once he disappeared into the kitchen Jack spoke, "Sam, I'm sorry. I was way out of line. I …"

Cutting him off, she said, "No, there were things I should have told you. You deserved to know I was with you in Iraq. I was the reason you were there for all those months. You might have gotten away if you had been alone. I swear, I never knew you were Charlie's father until after I signed the adoption papers. Sara just called you Jack. It never occurred to me that you were my Jack." She stopped at her slip, but either Jack didn't notice or pretended that he hadn't heard.

Running his fingers through his hair, he said, "I know, I was just surprised, and you mixed everything up in my mind. I didn't understand how I could have those feelings for you this soon. Sara and I may have been divorced, but we'd been together for a long time. I was terrified and I still am."

Sam just stared, unsure what to say. This whole thing was all mixed up. Maybe they needed some space from each other. There was no way either of them were ready to go down that road, at least, not yet.

She opened her mouth to tell him that, when Charlie called, "Are you two coming? If you're not here soon I'm going to eat it all myself."

They stared at one another, neither one moving. Finally, Charlie grabbed both of their hands and pulled them to the table. "I thought you two weren't going to fight. Let's eat."

Although they tried to resist, their eyes locked as they allowed themselves to be led. Their eyes told each other that this conversation wasn't finished. There was more to say even if they couldn't or wouldn't say it now.

* * *

Dinner went well, and Charlie basked in the family atmosphere. He kept looking from Jack to Sam. They sat side by side, just the way he planned, but they didn't touch each other.

Maybe, just maybe, he could have a really family after all. He would do everything in his power to get his dad and Sam together. He missed his mom, but he knew Sam would be able to make his father happy if he gave her the chance.

Dad needed Sam, and Sam needed Dad, but he didn't know if they would ever figure it out by themselves.

Once dinner was over, they sat down to watch the _Wizard of Oz_ together, Charlie's favorite movie. He managed to maneuver things so that Sam and Jack were sitting next to each other while he curled up beside Sam.

As Sam watched Dorothy travel down the yellow brick road, her late night caught up with her and she found herself slipping off to sleep long before anyone reached the Emerald City. Her head fell onto Jack's shoulder, but he said or did nothing as he and Charlie finished the movie.

Once the movie ended, Jack sent Charlie off to bed and he stayed where he was, enjoying having her close for a moment. Gently, he shook her, trying to wake her up. Sam curled closer, murmuring, "I don't want to get up, Jack. Please, let me sleep."

Jack would have loved to stay right there, but he knew in the morning she would have a horrible kink in her neck. So he sat her more upright and lifted her into his arms. Carrying her to her room, he opened the door and carried her to the bed.

Awkwardly, he pulled back the covers and laid her on the bed. Covering her up, he left the room, wondering what he was going to do. Sam Carter had taken up residence in his life and was sneaking into his heart. He didn't want to stop her.

* * *

Hours later, Jack lay in bed, down the hall in his own room, still thinking about what had happened in the last few days. There was too much between him and Sam, and if they were not careful, it would all blow up in their faces. He had to do something.

A scream shattered the silence. Jack was down the hall and in Sam's room before he even had time to think. Sam was curled up in the center of the bed, shaking. "Sam, are you all right?"

There were no sounds from the bed. Jack stepped into the room and sat down on the bed. He reached out and touched her shoulder. "Sam, wake up," he called. "You're safe. No one will hurt you here." At his touch, Sam shot up and grabbed on to him.

She was on the verge of hysteria, crying as she clung to him. "They told me you were dead. They wouldn't let me get to you. I saw that bullet hit you in the head and you went down. You weren't moving and they wouldn't let me get to you. The Iraqis were arriving in full force and I couldn't get to you. I never gave up hope that they would find you. You told me once that it would take a lot to kill you and I hoped that was true. Jack, I..." She swallowed trying to gain some control over her emotions.

"I should have told you who I was the moment you woke up, but I couldn't," she continued. "I was afraid you'd hate me for what I had done, for leaving you behind."

He pulled her closer to him, "Shh, it wasn't your choice. I never blamed you. Those men had to make a choice between their lives and a body." His hand strayed up to the scar hidden within his hair line and her hand followed. "It was too dangerous, and they left me behind."

Realizing what she had done, she dropped her hand back to his shoulder. Sam wanted to stay curled up in his arms; his presence kept the dreams away. She had no claims on him, but he didn't seem like he was ready to move. "What are we going to do?"

His arms tightened around her, letting her know he was not going to let her go. "I don't know any way but forward. Let's take this one step at a time, and see where this road leads us."

Not having an argument, Sam just allowed herself to enjoy being in his arms once more, and eventually slipped into sleep.

Jack held onto Sam until she stopped shaking and fell asleep again. When he felt her relax, he lay there, watching her sleep, much like he'd done when they were in hell together. Closing his eyes, Jack knew what he wanted. He wanted Sam Carter in his life with some permanency and commitment. He had to make her see this was where she belonged, with him and Charlie as his wife.

He had intended to return to his own bed. He didn't want to get Charlie's hopes up, but he drifted off to sleep still cuddled close with Sam. For the rest of the night they kept each other's nightmares away.

* * *

Charlie found them that way the next morning. Quietly, he went to the kitchen and made breakfast, consisting of bowls of Fruit Loops for each of them and some orange juice.

Sam woke up when Charlie closed the door again. She tried to slip out of the bed before he came back, but Jack's arm tightened around her. "Stay, we've done nothing wrong. If you leave we'll look guilty. I'll explain it to him, he'll understand. He knows about my nightmares, he'll accept yours as well."

Turning her head, she looked at Jack. She had never heard him cry out because of his nightmares. It had never occurred to her that he had them. A sad thought came to her mind: who comforted him when he woke? Did he endure it alone in the dark, like she had so many times? She cupped his face, "You don't have to do it alone, Jack. I'm here if you need me."

Jack was about to answer, when Charlie came back, carrying a laden tray into the room. Sam dropped her hand and smiled at Charlie, "You brought us breakfast. That's very sweet." Her voice sounded phony, even to herself.

Charlie smiled back as he set the tray on the bed, "Does this mean the two of you aren't going to fight anymore?" That was the question he asked, but it wasn't what he meant; everyone in the room knew it.

Sam swallowed and looked at Jack, who grabbed one of the bowls and nodded for her to speak. "Charlie, it's, I mean..." Sam stopped, unsure just what to say to the boy.

Jack was crunching away on his Fruit Loops, enjoying Sam's confusion. Then he said, "Sam had a nightmare last night. I held her until she went back to sleep, just like I do with you. I fell asleep, too. That's all; nothing's changed, yet." He turned his eyes to Sam letting her know they just might.

Deciding she was outnumbered, Sam ate her cereal, while Charlie joined them, eating his own bowl.

They had told him that nothing had changed, but he saw the way his dad looked at Sam when she wasn't looking, and how she looked right back. Something had changed, and it was for the better. He closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of being a family once more.

* * *

How's that for a Mother's Day Chapter. It was funny how that worked out. Leave a review and then you may get chapters next week too.


	13. Falling For You 13

* * *

**Author's note**: Hello everyone. I'm a little behind on answering your reviews and I won't have time to catch up because there have been so many. Thank you to everyone who asked for a Sunday chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I hope to be able to post Wednesday but it might be later than usual, it depends on my beta but no being grumpy she has done an awesome job getting the chapters to me so far.

**_Some of you had question and I will answer them now_**: **Sg1star: **Yes, I am a romantic at heart and I'm not afraid to admit it. I like to see people happy and tv shows don't seem to agree with that. Some of my favorite shows ended unsatisfactory to me,Due South, The Pretender and SG-1. There are more but I don't want to bore you. ** Disneynut: **Well this story is all done and it is **21 chapters long** so we have nine left to enjoy this little world. **Noes () **Their first kiss that is not in the flashbacks is coming soon watch for it in the next few chapters. It's there I promise. I went back and read the chapters so that I could make sure I knew where it was. **Ucrbrat: **I usually post Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Thanks to my wonderful beta I haven't missed it yet. Everyone give beautiful-babee a standing ovation. **H (): **Don't do that too often I don't want you to get fired. Glad you're enjoy my story.** Smily123: **Welcome to the world logging in and thank you for reviewing. Greetz again from Canada. **Ckarisny: **I loved the Fruitloops too I could just see it in my head especially the great big smile he had on his face when he came in the door. Don't forget the mess he would have left behind.

**To all the rest of you I had a great Mother's Day and I hope you did too. Now on with the show....  
**

* * *

Once all the food had been consumed, Jack ushered Charlie out, telling him they needed to give Sam some privacy to get ready for the day.

Sam waited for the door to close behind them before getting out of bed to gather what she needed for her shower. When she emerged later, she was unsure how to act around Jack, so she lingered in the kitchen, cleaning up the mess Charlie had created getting them breakfast.

She had to stop herself from looking at the doorway, hoping to see him standing there. Shaking her head, she thought how silly this was, but she couldn't stop herself. In the last few days, everything had changed.

He knew who she was and what they had been through together. A discussion was still needed and it was coming soon.

When she had wiped the counters down for the third time, Sam heard a commotion in the living room. Looking up, she saw Jack was chasing Charlie around the living room, trying to get something from him. "Give that back to me, it's mine!"

Charlie had Jack's glove and he shouted, "No way, Dad, you said that we'd play catch today. It's Saturday and it's what we used to do before-" he paused, "before everything happened and I want to do it again. Come on, Dad, let's go." He held out the glove to Jack, only to snatch it away once more, and continue running another lap around the room using the furniture to evade his dad.

Something let Charlie know Sam was there and he ran toward her. Hiding behind her, he called, "Save me, Sam, he's gonna get me!"

Jack didn't pause. He tackled both Charlie and Sam to the ground, shifting them enough that he took the brunt of the fall. Sam let out a squeal and Charlie was laughing. Jack launched a tickle fight and soon Charlie and Sam were forced to defend themselves.

Charlie held up his hands, "I surrender, Dad. Here's your glove. Please stop. I can't take it anymore!" He looked over at Sam, who nodded and smiled conspiratorially.

Jack stopped tickling and lay down on the floor, letting down his guard. Both Sam and Charlie attacked him mercilessly. He tried to fight back, but with both of them concentrating their attack on him, he had to bow to their superior strength.

A few minutes later, all of them collapsed on the floor, laughing. Jack looked over at Sam, who looked so relaxed, "So Sam, do you want to come and play catch with us?"

Charlie sat up and looked at Sam, "Please, Sam, come with us if you can. We're going to the park down the street. It'll be fun. We don't have much of a chance to do things together very often."

Not being able to deny Charlie anything, Sam said, "Sure, just give me a minute. I have to change my clothes and grab my glove." Then she disappeared down the hallway to do just that.

"All right, let's go, Dad. We'll need the bat since Sam's coming, too." But the minute Charlie got to his feet, Jack grabbed him and swung him over his shoulder, spinning him in circles.

"You're not going anywhere. You're my prisoner and I'm not letting you go." Jack laughed, still spinning his son around. He had never felt as free as he did at that moment.

"Dad, put me down! Sam's going to be back and I need to get the bat," Charlie demanded.

Laughing, Jack said, "No way! We have lots of time. Girls take forever to get changed, even if it's just their shoes."

There was a noise of someone clearing their throat, "Really?" Sam stood in the doorway, glove in hand dressed in old sweats, a tee-shirt and running shoes. "So we take forever, do we? Are _you _ready to go?"

Putting Charlie on his feet, Jack laughed, "Almost. Charlie, you grab the bat and your glove and meet us at the Jeep."

"I'll be right there, Dad." he raced from the room to get the requested items.

The three of them spent the next hour or so at the park playing various games together. Charlie's favorite moment was when his Dad tackled Sam to prevent her from catching a fly ball to enable her to get up to bat.

The two of them grappled for a while, but Sam managed to throw Jack off and pin him down. Her smile was brilliant, until Jack tossed her and made a run for it. Sam got up quickly and took off after him.

She managed to catch him and take him down using a football tackle. Their eyes met and something passed between them. Sam saw him coming closer; their lips would have touched when Charlie landed on the top of them, proclaiming that he was the king of the castle and they were the dirty rascals.

From there, it dissolved into another tickle fight with every man for himself. No one was the winner, and afterwards they lay in the grass, exhausted, watching the sky.

Sam pulled Charlie into a half hug and whispered into his ear. The boy laughed. It had been a while since Jack had seen the boy so happy. He needed to figure things out, because it was time to make this more permanent. He wanted to keep Sam with them forever, but he needed to know how he felt before he did anything.

With an easy smile, Jack got to his feet, offered Sam his hand and declared that it was time for ice cream, maybe even cake if they could find some.

They found an ice cream truck first and Jack bought each of them a treat. As they walked back to the truck, Jack had his arm around Sam. She leaned into him as though she belonged there.

Charlie tagged along behind them, munching on his drumstick. It would be easier than he thought to get Sam and his dad together. They were halfway there already.

The bubble around them burst when they arrived home and found Sam's cell phone ringing incessantly. With a hasty apology, she picked up the device to answer the call.

The discussion was short and to the point. The MALP had been approved to travel through the Gate. General West decided that it had to be today. She was to report immediately.

Ending the call, she smiled, "I have to go to work. I hope it's not for too long. I'm needed for a test. It's my experiment and I have to be there. I don't want to go, but I have to." She started for the front door and paused, "I'll call if I'm going to be late." With another smile, this one reaching her eyes, she was gone.

* * *

Sam stood beside Daniel, watching her machine disappear though the Gate. Everyone held a breath as it vanished through the simmering puddle. This was the 'make it or break it' moment; if this failed, her career might just be over. Her heart pounded as she waited for the video feed to come back.

Daniel took a deep breath as they watched. What would they find? Humans, aliens, or worse - nothing at all? His whole career had been spent trying to prove his theories and now, it could be all over in a matter of seconds, for better or for worse. .

Sam's voice was full of wonder, "Daniel, these are our first pictures of another planet. Air quality and gravity are within normal limits. We might find life on that planet."

Her voice was confused when she spoke next, "What are we looking at?" Turning her head, she tried to orient herself to the video footage.

Daniel studied the monitor and frowned, "It looks like the inside of a pyramid. I was right, Sam, we have to go there. Does everything check out?"

"It looks safe. Let me take a few more readings and then we can move the MALP around and see what we can find." Sam pushed a few keys on the keyboard.

Pressing closer to the monitor, Daniel declared, "This is so exciting, Sam. I can't wait! How soon can we get there?" He was bouncing from one foot to the other.

Shrugging, Sam said, "I'm not sure. General West said something about waiting for the man he wanted to lead the mission to come back on active duty."

About fifteen minutes later, the wormhole closed and Sam stood up, heading to her lab. It was time to get her report done.

Hours later, she stood up, picked up her mug and drank. She spit the cold, slimy liquid back into the cup. This had taken a lot longer than she thought. Looking into cup she frowned; cold coffee was disgusting. Checking her watch, she picked up the phone. "Hello?" the voice on the other end of the line answered almost immediately.

"Jack, it's me, Sam. I won't be home tonight. I have a report to finish before I can leave. Is it all right if you stay with Charlie tonight?"

"Sure, I can do that. Will you be here in morning or will you go to your Dad's place" Jack asked, watching Charlie lying on the floor doing his homework.

Sam played with the phone cord, "I don't know. I may just stay here depending how late it is."

"Sounds good. Will you be around tomorrow?" his voice was suddenly nervous; they needed to talk.

"Should be. I'm supposed to present some information tomorrow afternoon. Then I'll be home unless something happens. I have laundry to do, so if you want I can do yours, too. Don't leave too big of a mess for me to clean up."

Jack laughed, "We'll be good, I promise. See you tomorrow. Take care and don't stay up too late, Sam.

"I will Jack, 'night." Sam hung up the phone.

"Things a little better now?" Sam turned to find Daniel in the door to her lab leaning against the frame.

"Somewhat. We haven't really talked about anything, but he seems to have forgiven me for not telling him who I was. I'm not sure where to go from here. That night in Iraq he kissed me back, but I'm not sure why he did it. I'm not sure of anything."

Pushing up his glasses, Daniel stepped into the room, "I wish I had some profound advice for you. I'm not a genius at relationships. I always find away to destroy them, but I do think you need to talk to him. Sam, you're stumbling around in the dark wondering what he is thinking. Ask him. You may be surprised what happens."

"How long has it been since you have been home?" Sam asked changing the subject from Jack and herself.

Daniel smiled, "Way too long. I'm heading home now. I'll finish my report tomorrow before the meetings. I have nothing else to do." Turning, he headed out the door but stopped. "Sam, you should go home too. They don't need it tonight."

Sam looked at her computer, "No, I'm going to finish this tonight. It will mean I can spend my half day cleaning. It's been a while since I've been able to do it. I need to do laundry badly. Charlie was complaining that he has no clothes to wear and Jack doesn't do laundry."

Nodding his head, Daniel smiled, "I understand. Don't stay too late. Bye, Sam." With a final wave, he was gone.

* * *

Jack wandered the house. He didn't want to sleep or dream yet tonight. Charlie was already in bed and he needed something to do. Heading down the stairs, he looked though the boxes and wondered if he should go through Sara's things, but changed his mind when he spotted the box marked "Jack's Telescope".

He lifted the box from its place and took it upstairs. Over the next few minutes, he assembled the telescope, making sure it wasn't damaged. Then he carried it outside. Scanning the yard, he chose a place to put it.

The light pollution wasn't so bad out here, but he would need to find a more permanent spot. He wondered if the place he used to go was still usable. Tipping his head back, he looked up at the stars. In the past, the stars helped him forget the horrors he'd seen and done. They passed no judgment on him. No matter where he went, they were always there. Their positions changed but something was always there for him to see, to soothe his soul.

They had always fascinated him, never enough to pursue NASA. He didn't want to touch them, just study them. Those stars were there when the missions went bad to comfort him with their familiarity and to save him by telling him where home was. When he had the parachute mishap in 1989 and fractured his skull, he learned the stars of Iraq like he knew the ones in the sky here. It was the same thing out in the desert with Sam. They'd been able to use the stars to point them toward safety and the Kuwait border.

Sam … just thinking about her soothed his demons and lightened the burden of his memories. Now that he knew that she'd seen the darkness within him and still cared enough to comfort him,

he saw her very differently. The words she spoke that day in his room meant so much more. Her faith in him gave him the strength to face the world, to push back the darkness that always seemed to be there.

He had never been able to share that dark part of himself with Sara or anyone, but Sam had not only seen it, but lived it at his side. She had seen more of Jack O'Neill's soul than anyone else. The feeling was liberating - that someone could see that much of the real you and still love you.

Jack paused. Love… could Sam really love him? That night when they had escaped she told him that she might, but a lot of things had happened since that night. Did she still feel the same way?

Getting to his feet, Jack began to pace. He had to move or he would do something stupid like call her cell phone again. He wasn't really sure how he felt about Sam, but there was something pulling them together.

Sitting back down in his chair, he looked up and saw a falling star and made a wish. A while later, he climbed into his lonely bed, thinking about his wish. Laying down, he hoped it would come true.

* * *

So there you go one more down. I have to admit I didn't expect the reaction that I have got to this story.

I have been franticly trying to finish one of the other stories that I have on the go. I know how I'm ending both of them so I just have to get there now. Both stories will be longer than I thought they would be. I sat down and planned both of them out so that I know where I'm going sort of.

For those who don't know they are the Gladiator story and the Charlie and the Quantum Mirror. If you want a summery check out my profile and poll. These two are currently tied and if people want one more than the other that may tip the scales and I will devote more brain power to that one. I do have two short fic that are done and will be posted once Falling is done. These are Between the Scenes and A Letter from Cam...

If you are waiting for Dreams of the Soul this is the Sequel to my story Wishes of the Heart. It is still coming. It is now five chapters long and counting with about one more chapter on paper. I do plan to finish this one it is just been a bit more difficult to write. I have so much that I want to include that it is going to take a little bit longer than I thought.


	14. Falling For You 14

**Author's note:** Here we are again and this one is one of my favorite chapters in this story. By the way I didn't say there were too many reviews I just didn't have access to the computer on Saturday and there were so many so if you guys want that extra chapter on Sunday you better start speaking up now. I have answered everyone review from the last chapter and so more please. I love to hear from you!!!

**To my anonymous reviewers: nath452 (): **Thank you for the compliment. I work had to bring all of you good stories. ** Dp (); **I hope you like this one even more, I know I did. **H(): **I like to write stories with kids and family. I think Sam and Jack deserve to be happy and together and this comes through in my writing. I like happy endings. Thank you.

* * *

Sam was so very tired. She was in her car and was headed down the mountain before she recalled she could have slept on base. Paying close attention to the winding road, she debated about going to the apartment, but the house was closer. Jack wouldn't mind if she stayed there tonight.

Climbing out of the car, she crossed toward the backyard and the kitchen door. It was away from the bedrooms that were in the front of the house. If she was quiet, she should be able to get in without waking anyone up. Opening the back gate, she crossed the grass to the deck. Five minutes later she was in bed.

She was just drifting off to sleep when a yell shattered the silence of the night. It took her a moment to realize it wasn't hers. Lying there, frozen, Sam tried to identify who it was. When it sounded again another noise ensued. Bolting upright, Sam got out of bed; she knew that both Jack and Charlie had nightmares. In fact, they all did.

Her bare feet padded down the hall to Charlie's room. Opening the door quietly, she found the boy fast asleep in his bed. She waited a moment to see if he stirred, but he didn't move; he was sleeping peacefully. She crossed the room to his bedside and kissed his brow. "Sleep well, Charlie. I'll see you in the morning."

Closing the door, Sam decided that the dreamer must have been Jack. Moving further down the hall, she stopped at his door. Should she go inside to see if he needed anything? The last time she had been in his room was when he realized that she was Hansen. She couldn't help but remember his rage at her. That had passed, but would he want her to see him just after a nightmare?

Gathering her courage, she pushed open the door. The room was empty. His covers were all on the floor like he had kicked them off in his haste to leave the room.

Continuing down the hallway, she found him in the kitchen with his back to her and his hands braced on the counter as he struggled for control. His breath was harsh as though he had just run a five mile race. A half drank glass of water rested next to his hand.

Her father had been like this sometimes and she knew she had to be careful. She had to let him know she was there before she approached him. Standing in the doorway she called, "Jack, are you all right?"

He tensed at the sound of another voice, but she continued speaking, "It's Sam. I heard you and I thought you might like the talk about your dream. It helped me the other night to have you listen."

He didn't turn around. "It never makes any sense after I wake up. Just images, sensations, pain and fear. Tonight you were there, I couldn't help you, couldn't save you. Sam, I watched you die. Sam-"

As he said her name he turned to face her. Something changed in his expression, "Come with me." He crossed the room and took her hand leading her out into the yard. It was not just the nightmare that had driven him out of his bed, but a startling revelation and he was still reeling from it.

* * *

Jack sat up, breathing hard. The screams had barely died on his lips when he realized that he loved Sam, not Hansen, but Sam. The lingering fear from the dream still clung to him. 'Sam, he needed Sam.' was the thought that played over and over in his mind.

Part of him wanted to find her and tell her right now, but another wanted to curl up back into the dark place he had just emerged from and hide from the world. He couldn't stay here, he needed to move. Kicking all the covers off the bed, he got to his feet, heading down the hall to the kitchen to get a glass of water, hoping that would calm his nerves.

Soft footsteps came down the hall and Jack stopped to listen. His brain went into over drive as he tried to calm himself. It must be Charlie; they were alone in the house and he needed to be in control. Taking a deep breath, he pulled himself together.

"Jack, are you all right?" Sam's voice called to him. bringing him back from the darkness. When had she got here? When he had gone to bed she wasn't here.

Letting go of the breath he didn't know he held, he tried to hear her words. They just flowed over him; then he was talking about his dream. Part of him wanted to lock it all away and try to forget it, but he needed to tell her, tell her that he needed her.

"Sam-" Turning to face her, he tried to get the words out, but they wouldn't come.

Sam came into view, dressed in her pajamas. She hadn't bothered to change before heading to find out who had the nightmare.

His heart quickened at the sight of her. They talked around what was happening between them now and in Iraq, but never directly. That was too frightening for either of them to do. It was there now, pulling them closer together, and he didn't feel like fighting it anymore.

His mind strayed to the first time he saw her frightened and alone in the hole of a prison. She was beautiful then, but even more so now in the half light of the kitchen. Her hair had grown out since those days in Iraq and it was in a page boy just below her chin.

"Come with me." If he couldn't tell her, maybe he could show her that he needed her. Taking her hand, he led her into the backyard to where he'd set up the telescope.

Their feet were almost silent as they crossed the grass together. They came to a stop not far from where the telescope stood. Sam was nervous, she wasn't sure what Jack was doing or what his frame of mind was, so she began to babble, "Your telescope, I hope that I didn't hurt it when I packed it up. Sara wanted Charlie to have it when he was older and able to look after it. She said that he had good memories of the two of you looking at the stars." Sam looked up at him, unsure what else to say.

Jack didn't move; he just watched her, studying her curiously. Sam felt very exposed. She met his gaze, but he didn't do anything. After a moment, she turned and headed toward the house, "It's late. I'd better go. 'Night, Jack."

"Sam…" he said, stepping forward and grabbing her hand. "Stay if you want to. There's something I want to show you." He dropped her arm, unsure.

The smile she awarded him with made it all worthwhile. "Sure, what is it?"

Moving over to the telescope, he said, "Earlier tonight I found our star. It was just to the left of

the Polar Star." His voice was soft as he pointed up into the sea of stars.

Both of them were caught up in the memory of the day he showed her the star for the first time. The day that he had given it to her. It was something he had never shared with anyone, not even Sara or Charlie.

_

* * *

The air around them was cold, Sam wished she could light a fire__,__ but she didn't risk the smoke being seen by the wrong people_

_Jack's fever had broken early that morning__,__ thanks to the small amount of antibiotics she found in the med kit. Laying down__,__she __curl__ed__ up next to him to try and conserve some of the body heat the two of them still had. She didn't want him to have a relapse._

"_Hansen, are you awake?" His voice was croaky._

"_I'm here__,__ Jack. Do you want some water?" she asked__,__ sitting up and grabbing one of the bottles of water. When he nodded, she helped him sit up and supported him while he drank._

_Even though they didn't have much water, she let him finish the bottle. He needed the water; the fever had sapped his strength and dehydrated him. That was a dangerous combination out here in the desert._

_Once the bottle was empty, he motioned for her to lay him back down. Tilting his head__,__ he looked up at the sky for a moment and pointed. "Right there, Hansen. That's my star, see it there. It's faint__,__ but it still manages to shine enough to be seen. Someday__,__ I will show it to you through my telescope. I found it when I was alone in the desert last time and now it's ours." His voice broke again as he remembered the pain and loneliness of his solitary trek across the desert to safety._

_She could see he was remembering and she grabbed his hand squeezing it. Eventually he looked at her, pulled from the memory by her touch._

"_What happened?" Sam asked._

"_Little parachuting mishap, over the borders of Iran and Iraq. My chute opened late. It hurt when I hit the ground and__ I ended up__ fractur__ing__ my skull."__  
"So, how long before you were rescued?" Her voice told him she wished he didn't have to live through the pain.  
"No rescue. It wasn't exactly...an official mission, if you know what I mean, so I had to make it out on my own. It took nine days." His voice was quiet and he could hear Hansen thinking._

_Tightening his grip on her, he whispered in her ear, "We'll make it home. If I made it alone with a broken skull, the two of us can do it__,__ too. I know we will and then we'll figure this all out, figure us out. If you get discouraged__,__ just look up and you'll know that I'm with you." He pulled her closer. "Tomorrow we should start walking, it's the only choice."_

_Shaking her head, she pulled away enough to look up at him "No__,__ sir. I'm the medic and I order you to rest for one more day. Give me that much time to try and get the radio working. If I can't__,__ we'll start walking."_

_He pulled her closer again, saying, "One more day." she felt him sigh, "Why don't you get some sleep then. I'll watch for a while."_

_Turning over again, she studied him for a moment, trying to decide if he was strong enough to do this. Whatever she was looking for__,__ she found__,__ as she rolled back over and closed her eyes, "All right__,__ only a few hours. Wake me if anything happens."_

_Smiling__,__ he said, "Okay, Lieutenant."_

_He lay his head down beside hers and felt her drift off to sleep. As she slept__,__ Jack studied the woman in his arms. To him she was such a contradiction. One moment he wanted to protect her and keep her safe, the next he knew he could trust her to watch his six in a fight._

_He'd met military woman before but most of them seemed to have given up something to get where they were. That wasn't Hansen. There was a part of her that was still gentle and kind and that made him care for her all the more. Where those feelings would take them__,__ he didn't know, but he made a promise to himself that he'd get her home so they could find out._

_She relaxed. The moment she fell asleep__,__ he pressed a kiss into her hair just above her ear. "We'll make it__,__ Hansen, I promise," he said. Then turned his eyes out into the black night and waited for __ dawn._

* * *

"Sam?" At the sound of her name she looked up, dragging herself from the memory of that night.

Looking up at him in the blackness of the night, she asked, "Yes, Jack?" She was trying to reign in the emotions this man stirred in her, but each time she was near him, it got harder and harder.

"Do you want to see it?" Sam furrowed her brow, wondering what he was talking about. Then he continued, "I found our star, last night when I was out here. Come and see it."

He grabbed her hand once more and pulled her closer to the telescope. "Just look through there." He motioned to the eye piece and she bent down to look.

There was a small star shining brightly, like the promise they made to each other long ago that they would get home. Was he trying to tell her something else?

He was standing so close that she could smell his scent off the soft breeze. Standing up again, she could feel him come even closer, turning around brought her face to face with him. He was so close, but Sam found herself wanting to get closer.

"It's beautiful. Thank you for showing it to me. Does it have a name?" she stepped back a little to try and get her equilibrium back.

He shrugged, "Yes, but it is only a bunch of numbers and letters. I think it should have a better name like 'Sam's Star'." Lifting his hand gently, he touched her face. "Sam, I can't stop thinking about you and what happened in Iraq. I miss you when you're not there. I don't want you to go, stay with me always."

Drawing a breath, she met his gaze as he cupped her face with both hands. His words spilled over her and she leaned into his hand, welcoming his touch. One hand shifted, tilting her head up toward his as his lips descended.

The kiss shocked them both; their worlds tilted and then flipped over.

A few minutes later, Sam stepped back. Her breath came out harshly as she fought to control her racing heart.

Jack wasn't in any better shape as he rested his forehead against hers, trying to slow his senses. His whole world was spinning out of control. He had to know if these whirling emotions were real. Closing the small distance Sam had created, he fisted her hair, bringing her mouth back to meet his. With a sigh, she melted into him, holding onto him as though he was the only thing that existed.

Sam clung to him as everything else vanished. Nothing mattered but the two of them.

She knew.

She knew she loved Jack O'Neill and she had ever since they were in that dark hole together. For a long time, she had tried to fight it, but now she surrendered to her emotions.

Lifting her hand to his hair, she suddenly had a thought. 'Did he love her?'

He wanted her, but that was not the same thing, not by a long shot. Suddenly terrified he might be doing this only to make sure she was always there for Charlie, Sam pulled away.

Backing away from him, she was afraid to meet his eyes, to see what she might or might not find there. It was better to dream than to know for sure. Stumbling, she said, "It's late. I need to get back to bed. I'll be here in the morning."

With that, she fled back to the house. She ignored his calls for her to stop. Once inside her room, she closed the door and leaned against it.

A moment later, Jack knocked, "Sam, I need to talk to you. Open the door, please."

Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, "No, Jack, don't do this now. I'm really tired."

Sam stayed where she was until she heard his footsteps head back down the hallway to his room. Feeling like a coward, she climbed into her bed and tried to sleep, wondering if she should have opened the door.

Everything was so mixed up. She knew she loved Jack, but who did he love? Was it her or Hansen, or was it just an illusion to make her stay for Charlie? Daniel's advice came back to her. _Talk to him, tell him how you feel and go from there._

Rolling over, Sam hugged the pillow to her chest, wishing she knew which it was. Jack was the only one who could answer, and she had turned him away.

* * *

There you have it let me know your thoughts. I'd love to hear from you. ~Kelleth~

* * *


	15. Falling For You 15

**Author's Note: **Well here we are again. We only have six chapters left in this my poll you guys have spoken, the next story that I will post will be my Charlie and the Quantum mirror story now called Mirror Mirror? If you want a say in the one after that one check out the list. I have posted a new one so that I can get a new reading of what you guys want. Okay I also added a new poll. If you guys want some impute on which story is done next check it out and vote.

So far you guys haven't convinced me that you want your bonus chapter so if you do speak now or wait until Monday. Oh and by the way I love this chapter and the next one, they were so much fun to write.

To my anonymous reviewers: **yol (); **You are so very right. Sam is wasting time but would the story be as fun or realistic if she just fell into Jack's arms and declared her undying love? **H (); **Here is the next chapter this one was fun to write. Hope you like it.

Some of you asked why Sam didn't just talk to Jack well as** Kamikashi** said in her review, "Anyway, Sam is really... the No 1 coward in matters of the heart. Granted,her first try (Jonas Hansen) gave her quite a scare, but still... It's just like Jacob said in "Grace" on _Prometheus_ (I think the apparition was talking of her fears), she has to let go sometimes." ** Kami** is right she has to let go and just fall. Read on and see if she can do it....

* * *

Jack turned away from Sam's door, unsure just what had gone wrong. He knew she had feelings for him, but she also kept running from him. He'd never said how he felt about her, not out loud when she could hear it, because he'd never been sure. Did he love her? It was all so mixed up.

He had loved Sara. But he had shut her out of most of his life, not only to protect her, but also because he was afraid to show her who he was. With Sara he never wanted to share his nightmares, his hopes, and his dreams. Sam, on the other hand, was different. He wanted to tell her the things he had never told anyone. She had seen who he was in the shadow world. She had seen him kill men with his bare hands, and yet she was still here. If that wasn't love, he didn't know what was.

Every time he opened his mouth to tell her how he felt, the words wouldn't come. The best he could do was what he had done tonight. He'd gotten some of the words out before he'd kissed her.

His eyes closed at the memory. Part of him wanted to go and force her to talk to him, to make her listen to him. He wanted her to know, despite his feelings for Hansen, there was no longer any doubt. He loved her, he loved Sam.

"I love Sam," he said. Somehow, he hoped saying the words aloud in the dark would make it easier to say in the light, with Sam in his arms.

Shucking the clothes he'd thrown on after his nightmare, Jack climbed back into bed. Sleep was a long time away, and when it did come, it was filled with nightmares, and no one was there to hold him at the end of it all.

* * *

Sam spent the next morning cleaning the house before she had to go back to the base for a briefing with the Generals in charge of the project. She had managed to avoid being alone with Jack, until he was called to the Anderson Air Force Base to have a psych evaluation and a physical.

By the time he drove away from the house in his Jeep, Jack was very frustrated. Sam had to know what this summons meant but she still wouldn't talk to him. She was stubborn as she was beautiful. It was obvious that they were ready to put him back on active duty, and that intended he would be leaving to re-enter that dark shadow world.

He was running out of time and he still had so much to do and say.

* * *

Hours later, he walked out of the psych session feeling as though he'd been through the wringer. Jack had not mentioned Sam or his feelings for her; she was none of their business. The questions he'd been asked only confirmed his suspicions. He needed to talk to someone who knew what he was feeling, so he turned his Jeep toward Jake's apartment.

Using his key, he headed up to the shared apartment on the third floor. The older man opened the door when Jack knocked. With out any preliminaries, Jack said, "Jake, I need to talk to you. It's about Sam."

With a wave of his hand, Jake said, "Come in, then."

Jake led the way into the kitchen and poured them each a cup of coffee. Silence descended upon them as they drank and Jacob studied Jack.

He'd been watching the two of them for the last few weeks. He could read Sam like a book, but Jack was too good of a poker player for Jake to know for sure. Sam loved this man, and Jake was pretty sure Jack loved her. But like him, Jack was a solider who had seen too many horrible things to just open up and spill their guts.

"Well, son, why are you here?" Jake asked when they had finished their first cup and began to pour Jack another.

Staring down at his cup, Jack asked, "Has Sam ever talked about Iraq?"

Shaking his head, Jake said, "Nope, never a word. But I know you were there. I've heard her nightmares. She calls out for you."

Getting to his feet, Jake looked out the window over the sink, giving time for Jack to digest that information. "It was the worst time in my life since I lost my wife. Sam went missing and they couldn't tell me anything. They knew she was on the convoy, but her body wasn't with the rest. They gave me the run around and I never understood what my family had gone through until I had to sit at home and wait for my little girl to come home, either alive or dead. I'm thinking I have you to thank for the 'being alive' part."

Jack's voice was quiet, "I did for her what I would do for anyone else. She saved me as much as I saved her.

Taking a deep breath, Jake sat back down, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really, but I have to tell someone," he said, "and those quacks on the base don't help me at all." He looked up, but his eyes weren't focused on Jake.

"Sam and I met in a dingy cell in Iraq. For some lucky reason, they never realized that she was female. I took her under my protection. None of the other men knew she was female; we managed to hide it well, or so we thought. In the beginning I just wanted to get her home, to make sure she was safe. When we were together, I was never sure, but when we got separated I knew I loved Hansen…"

Jake looked at Jack, a look of questioning began to fill his countenance. Jack continued, "That's what she told me her name was, Hansen. I think she was afraid if they learned who she was that she'd never get home. A scientist like her would be valuable." Jack paused to take a drink, staring into his cup.

"All those months alone in the dark I only had Hansen to keep me going when I was alone and in pain. She gave me the strength to endure, to keep on living and hoping that one day I would be able to find her again. That all changed when I woke up in the hospital and I met Sam. Suddenly all those thoughts of Hansen were gone. They didn't matter anymore. She didn't seem to matter anymore. I was so confused. Suddenly, I was falling for Sam and I couldn't understand it at all. Then when I found out they were the same person, I flipped."

He started pacing the room; he was full of nervous energy, but he had to get this out. He had to figure everything out before it drove him insane. He walked over to the window and stared out at the street below, much like Jacob had done a few minutes ago. "She forgave me for the things I said to her, but where do we go from here?"

Jacob studied Jack's profile from where he sat, "Where do you want to go?"

Rubbing his hand over his face, Jack said, "I want her in my life and by my side. I've never known anyone like her. I miss her when she's gone and I want to know she'll be there with Charlie when I come home."

Closing his eyes, Jacob said a silent thank you to someone for putting these two together. Jack O'Neill was not what he would have chosen for his daughter, but he was a good man. He loved his Sammie, and most importantly, Sammie loved him.

"Jack, you need to tell her these things. The two of you have been dancing around all this and now you need to settle things." Jake paused, "Why are you here now, what changed?"

The younger man sighed and turned around, "I was called in for a psych evaluation today. I think I'm going back on active duty. If that happens, I don't want to leave without telling Sam how I feel. But each time I try to tell her, I just can't get the words out." There was fear in his voice and Jacob understood what was going on.

"You're going to have to either find those words or lose her, son. Waiting won't make it any easier. You need to do it now. She's scared. Sam's always been afraid to depend on anyone, even me. She's been hurt by the people who should have protected her and loved her. Jonas wasn't the only one to break her heart. I did it, too."

Still staring out the window, Jack said, "Well, I guess it's do or die then. Thanks for listening to me, Jake. I should tell you that I'm planning to ask her to marry me. I want this to be permanent. I love your daughter and I don't want to let her go."

Smiling, Jacob said, "That's a start. Now go tell her, and let me know how it turns out." Without another word, Jack left.

* * *

Jack knew if he wanted to get into the mountain, he had to look the part. Heading down to the basement, he grabbed his dress uniform from where it hung. Taking it upstairs, he laid it on the bed and opened it up. It was newly pressed and ready to wear. His rack was pinned to the front of his coat. He was surprised to find new ribbons added since he had worn the garment last. That meant that Sam had put them there for him.

It had to mean something did it? He had to have faith that he would be able to convince her that he loved her.

Lifting them out, he slowly dressed and headed up to Cheyenne Mountain with a prayer that they would let him in.

The drive up the mountain took less time than he thought it would. The Cheyenne Mountain Complex had been there for a long time but until now, he'd never had a reason to visit. Pulling to stop at the gates, Jack hoped he'd be able to pull Sam away from what she was doing long enough to talk to her.

He was surprised to be waved through without too many preliminaries. He was a Colonel but he did expect to be asked why he wanted to get into the base. Once he signed in, he asked where to find Captain Carter. The SF told him to proceed to the maximum depth of the elevator and take the next one. From there, someone would show him the way.

Jack stepped off the second elevator and was met by a Sergeant who saluted, "Sergeant Walter Harriman, sir. Colonel, if you'll follow me, I'll take you where you need to go."

Trying to sound casual, he asked, "So, you're taking me to see Captain Carter?"

The man did not break his stride as he said, "Where I'm taking you, Captain Carter will be there, Sir."

Unsure just what was going on, Jack fell into step behind the other man through the maze of corridors, only to stop at the briefing room.

Seated around the take was a stack of Generals. Jack still didn't understand why he was there, and immediately, he snapped to attention. "Colonel Jack O'Neill, Sirs."

General West got to his feet, motioning to one of the empty chairs. "Have a seat, son. We didn't expect you until later today. You might as well sit and get yourself familiarized with the mission."

Standing beside an empty chair, Jack looked around the room. He didn't know any of these men. He'd never served with any of them before. "Uh, sir?" he addressed General West, "I'm not sure why I'm here."

West looked around the room, concerned, "You haven't been contacted by Major Simmons? You haven't received any orders yet?"

Shaking his head, he said, "No, sir. I wasn't aware I'd been approved for duty yet, I just had my psych evaluation a few hours ago." Jack tried to keep the annoyance out of his tone, but one of the generals, a larger bald man, smiled at his tone.

Motioning to Walter, West asked, "Just why are you here, Colonel?"

Jack swallowed. The man was getting annoyed, he could tell. He looked around the room at the other men. The bald one, Hammond according to his tag, smiled.

"I came to see Captain Carter. I had no other reason to be here," Jack said. He was beginning to get worried. Just what was going on here?

"If you didn't know about the mission, why did you want to speak to Carter?" The man asked. Jack could hear what amounted to a sneer in his voice.

Keeping his voice steady, he said, "It is a personal matter, sir. It's about my son."

Hammond spoke up before West could. "That is fine, son, have a seat and Carter will be along in a few moments. She doesn't like to be late."

Jack opened his mouth, unsure how to respond, but closed it when Harriman put a folder in front of him. "I suggest you read that, Colonel. You'll find some of your answers in there. The rest will have to wait," Hammond said, kindly ignoring the anger on the face of General West.

Harriman ignored the tension in the room, "Anything else, Sir?"

Jack just shook his head, opened the folder and began scanning the contents. It seemed he was going on a mission consisting of Kawalsky, Sam, that Daniel Jackson guy and a few more men whose names he didn't recognize.

This had to be some sort of joke. He'd been out of Iraq for less than two months; there was no way he should be doing anything in uniform, let alone leading a team though the Stargate, whatever that was.

As he read further into the mission plan, he knew why he'd been selected and it made his blood run cold. Not a lot of men had experience with nuclear weapons. The words stood out from the page: 'assess the threat and if needed detonate a nuclear ordinance.'

He finished reading all the papers and was about to ask what probably was a stupid question, when Sam walked into the room, carrying her own stack of files. She had been about to salute the men sitting at the table, when she noticed Jack. She stammered and demanded, "Ja-ack, what are you doing here?"

Getting to his feet, he looked at her, "Well, it looks like I'm the leading this mission. I understand you're going to explain it to me."

* * *

Well how's that for the ending of the chapter. Remember if you want more on Sunday you will have to speak now or forever hold your peace and wait until Monday.

~Kelleth~


	16. Falling For You 16

**Author's note:** Well you guys asked and here it is. I hope it doesn't disappoint. Sorry about the cliffhanger, again I never thought of it as one. I just thought this would be a fun place to stop. Remember there are only six chapters left for you all to enjoy including this one. So enjoy this one while it lasts. I thought since you guys asked so nicely I would give this to you today. More on Monday watch for it.

**To my anonymous reviewers: sjalways (): **Well it hinged on my beta's time and so here it is as soon as I could get it to you. If you feel inclined check out some of my other ones. **Yolie (): **I hope that you like what happens in this chapter and the next few. Enjoy! **Dp ():** Glad to see you again. Thank you I was proud of it. H **(): **I'm glad that Jack leading the mission was a surprise. Here is the next one just for you and everyone else who reviewed.

* * *

Sam stood there in shock. If Jack was leading the mission, what did that mean for them? For Charlie? What was she going to do now? Had he known about this when he arrived? He must have. Why else would he have come here? Did the Generals know about their connection?

Questions swirled around her head until General West cleared his throat and jolted Sam from her thoughts. Sheepishly, she stepped to the head of the table, trying to recover some of her dignity. As she looked down at her notes and started to speak, Daniel Jackson rushed in, late as usual.

He dropped into the only empty chair at the table, the one beside Jack. Ignoring the stares from the Generals around the table, Daniel studied Jack.

Jack's was the only new face around the table. He'd met these other men before. That meant this must be who was leading the team through the Stargate. Holding out his hand he said, "I'm Dr. Daniel Jackson, and you are…?"

He took Daniel's offered hand, "Colonel Jack O'Neill."

"Ah!" The younger man looked over at Sam and mouthed, "Your Jack?" Sam shrugged in reply, making motions to tell him now was not the place to be talking about this.

General West cleared his throat once more, "Begin, Captain."

She nodded and said, "Well, this is what we know..."

* * *

Sam completed the briefing, leaving Jack even more confused. What on earth were they talking about? Stargate, wormholes, and other planets - the whole thing made his head hurt.

General West stood and dismissed everyone. The other generals left the room, leaving only Daniel, Sam, and Jack. Looking from one person to the other, Daniel shrugged, "I need to check out a few things before the briefing this afternoon. I'll let you two, uh, talk." he turned to leave, but paused, "Nice to finally meet you, Jack."

"You too, Jackson. Nice to put a face to the voice. See you later." Jack watched him go and then turned to Sam, "What's going on? I came to talk to you and now I'm leading a mission. Did you know about this?" He motioned to the brief lying on the table.

Sam shook her head, "I knew they were waiting for the man they wanted to be back on active duty. I had no idea it was you. You're just back. How could they send you out again? You haven't been cleared for active duty."

Jack looked at her feeling a little sad, "I had my psych evaluation this morning and a fitness evaluation after that. Were you just going to leave without telling me… us?"

Sam stepped back, "No, I wasn't authorized to tell you about it before now. I was going to tell you today when I got home. They had just set the date this morning. That would have been all I would have been able to tell you, but now I can explain everything."

Jack nodded. He understood how these things worked.

"You understand what this was talking about?" He asked picked up the briefing files he had tried to read.

Taking it from his hand, she smiled, "Yes. I'm the one who wrote it. Come with me. There is something I need to show you."

She led the way down through the control room and through a set of blast doors. Sam motioned to the large circular thing at the top of the ramp, "That is the Stargate."

Jack stared up at the large ring, unsure just what to say, "Whoa," slipped out.

Crossing the room, he walked up the ramp, stopping at the top of it. He looked questioningly at Sam, who had followed him up to the Stargate.

With a smile on her face she nodded, "You can touch it." Hesitantly, Jack reached out and brushed the great stone ring with his fingers.

"So this is what will allow us to travel to another planet? It really works?" There was awe in his voice.

"That's the theory. So far only the MALP has traveled through the gate. It came out just fine on the other side. So it should be the same with us."

Pulling his hand back, Jack asked, "A what?"

"A MALP," Sam replied. It's short for Mobile Analytic Laboratory Probe. It's capable of detecting temperature, analyzing oxygen levels, and transmitting video feeds. I built it so we'd be able to know what was on the other side." Sam looked at metal ring with that huge smile on her face and Jack could feel the excitement rolling off her in waves. He couldn't hold back his smile. "In a week's time I'll get to step through the Gate and know what's on the other side of the wormhole. We'll see something no one from earth has seen for thousands of years."

Feeling his eyes on her, she turned away from the gate and looked at him, shivering at the look she could see in his eyes.

She felt like she had been punched in the gut. She'd seen pictures of Jack in his uniform but now there wasn't the presentation to worry about and she could really look at him now. He was certainly a gorgeous man in his dress blues.

Sam swallowed, "So why are you here, if not for the briefing?"

Leaning forward, he said, "You." Then he walked down the ramp.

He paused, stopping a few steps away from her.

"Is there somewhere we could talk alone?" Jack asked, nodding to the audience watching them from the control room window.

"We can talk in my lab," Sam answered. "It's private, no one ever comes there. Follow me."

Without another word, Jack allowed her to lead the way out of the gate room, wondering how that ring would change their lives.

* * *

Sam's lab was filled with large computers with a work bench in the middle. It was strewn with various parts that had been rejected when she was building the MALP.

Feeling nervous, she set out two stools, "Have a seat."

Jack wandered around the room, picking up various things from the bench and playing with them. Then, as though he realized what he was doing, he stopped and put his hands in his pockets, rocking back on his heels.

She watched, wondering what this was about; she had never seen Jack this nervous. As he circumvented the room once more, she began to get worried; why was he here? What was so horrible that he could not just come out and say it?

Finally, he seemed to gather some courage, "Well, Sam I was coming here to ask you out for dinner, but given the change in circumstances, I think I need to change the question and up the ante." He stepped closer. Sam wasn't sure what to say as he stood right in front of her. There was almost no room between them.

Leaning closer, he said, "After I was caught again and left in that dark cell, Hansen was the only thing that kept me going. The thought of finding her and making sure that what we had been feeling was real. I woke up back home, safe, and you were there. Hansen no longer mattered. You took her place in my thoughts. It didn't make any sense to me. I was so confused by what was happening." Turning away to give her a little space, he moved to the bench and picked up something to keep his hands busy.

"Jack, I don't understand what you mean," Sam said, studying him. Could he be really saying what she thought he was?

"I wanted to give us more time, but now, time is running out. In one week, we're going through the Stargate. I want you to be my wife." He looked at her intently, his eyes unwavering.

Sam met his gaze, shocked at what he was asking, "We hardly know each other, Jack. Why would you ask that? I won't marry you for Charlie. I promise to be there for him no matter what happens between us."

Reaching out, he touched her face. "My asking has nothing to do with Charlie, not really," he said. "I'm asking because I love you. Marry me, Sam. Stay with me." Jack refused to retreat.

Flooded with love, Sam stepped back, unsure. Jonas had hurt her so much, because of that, she wasn't confident in her judgment of men.

"I need time to think about this," she said. She could hear the tremor in her voice and she hated it as she looked away from him.

Jack dropped his hands to his side and stepped back, "Was I wrong, Sam? Were those worlds a lie?"

She looked up meeting his gaze confused, "What?"

"That night in the desert you said you might love me, well, I want to know. Do you?" he demanded.

"Jack, that's not it. I'm scared. Don't you know the power you have? Jonas almost crushed me, if I hadn't been able to leave and go to Iraq, it wouldn't have ended as nicely as it did." She paused and took a deep breath, "I was a wreck for the first few months until I managed to pull myself together. I'm not sure I'm ready for all that again."

Anger rose in Jack. What did she think he was going to do?

"Ready for what, Sam?" he asked. "To love and to be loved? Is that such a horrible thing, to wake up each morning next to someone who loves you? To have that person hold you at night when the nightmares come?" Jack paused running his fingers through his hair. "I'm ready for that, Sam and I want you. Do you love me or not?"

Sam looked at him. His eyes blazed and she shivered, but not in fear. This Jack was much different than any side of him she'd seen. His emotions were all on the surface for her to see. He arched a brow and gave her an "I'm waiting" look.

"Yes, Jack I do, but…" she tried.

He cut her off, "No buts, Sam." Then he stopped, taking a deep breath, "Do you think this is easy for me? These hands, Sam, they have done horrible things." He lifted up his hands to show them to her. "You've seen what they can do. I've never been able to share that with anyone, but you."

He reached out linking her hands in his, "Don't you understand what that means? You've witnessed what I've done and you still love me. How can I not love you? You're strong, beautiful, and you have more brains than I could ever imagine. Let's give this a try. Sam, it's time to stop running and let me love you."

He waited for an answer but none came. Not knowing what else to do, he grabbed her and tried to pour everything he was feeling into the kiss.

Sam was so surprised by the depth of his emotion that she didn't have a chance to respond. Then, just as suddenly as it began, it was over. Jack was gone, leaving Sam to decide if she really wanted to live without him.

* * *

Oh sorry I guess this is another one. I really didn't think that they were cliffhangers when I wrote it. It was just a nice place to end the chapter. I really did.

Also if you want input on which story is next check out my poll and vote. I do listen to you. Mirror, Mirror? is the next story, this was previuosly known as Charlie and the Quantum mirror. So far of the new choices the Asgard Baby fic is winning but if you guys are still waiting for Dreams vote now. ~Kelleth~


	17. Falling For You 17

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**Author's note:** Well one more down and four more to go. I guess this will be all done next Monday. That is if you keep those reviews coming.

I have fixed the poll to allow for two votes. I thought that I did that, but I forgot. So if you feel inclined vote for another choice. So far I plan to post Mirror, Mirror? And then the Gladiator fic called Faith and Hope since it is much closer to being done while working on the Asgard Baby fic.

I was serious about sending a sample chapter a few of you have taken advantage of it this time and in the past. I do need an email address though the chapters are too big to send in a PM so look up my email and drop me a line.

**To my anonymous reviewers: ** **Yolie (): **I'm glad I fill your need. I have read that both Sam and Jack will be on the pilot for Stargate Universe. It might be worth watching just to see them together again. As well I have heard that we are supposed to have resolution of their relationship in the third SG-1 movie. Cross your fingers. **Dp ():** Here is your more. I love the ending of this chapter it was one of my favorites, but so the following chapter as well. **H (): **Glad you liked it. Enjoy this one as well. I love the ending of the one as well.

* * *

Jack stormed through the halls feeling lost. How could he convince her that he did love her? When he'd calmed down a bit and found that he was hopelessly lost, Jack stopped someone and asked for directions to the commissary. Changing directions, Jack decided that he could think this over while having pie. He always thought better with pie or cake, for that matter.

A while later, he sat alone, eating his third piece of pie, while the third piece of cake sat, waiting. The desserts were good, but he didn't even notice as he brooded.

"May I sit, Colonel?" Jack looked up to find Daniel Jackson standing there.

With a shrug, he said, "Sure, Dr. Jackson. And it's Jack. You're not in the military so you don't have to call me by my rank."

"Then I'm Daniel," he said as he put down his tray on the table. "So, Jack, rumour has it you were reactivated just for this mission. How do you feel about that? I mean the fact that you have to leave your son again already?"

Lifting his eyes from his pie, Jack studied Jackson. This man was definitely not military, so why was he going on this mission? What did this man bring to the table that the others couldn't do? Jack really didn't want to answer the other man's question, so he turned the tables and asked him something in response.

"Okay, I get why I'm going on the mission. I understand why Kawalsky and the other men are going. Given what is involved, I also understand why they're sending Sam, but why you?" He motioned toward Daniel with his hand.

Eating his food, Daniel shrugged, "I have to find the point of origin and get us home again. I'm the most familiar with the script they think we'll find there."

"Ah, so you are a doctor of..." Jack asked, finishing the pie and starting on the cake without pausing.

"Archeology, specializing in Ancient Egypt," Daniel said, forking a mouthful of food into his mouth.

Now Jack was confused, "They think you can do that because…why?" There was so much about all this he didn't understand.

Frowning, Daniel said, "Didn't Sam explain this all to you? I thought she was going to before the next briefing?"

Jack shoveled half of the remaining cake into his mouth. "She was, but we had a disagreement." His words were barely audible around his mouthful of cake.

Trying to sound casual, Daniel asked, "About what?"

Playing with the crumbs on the plate, Jack wondered how much Daniel knew about him and Sam's relationship. From their conversation that night…well morning, he seemed to know a lot.

Jack wasn't one to confide in anyone, let alone a stranger. "We just had a disagreement, that's all. I'll talk to her later."

Still eating slowly, Daniel said, "I have no advice for you about relationships, but I can tell you what I know about the Stargate's history. I can't explain how it works like Sam can, but you'll at least know the background," he said, getting up from his chair.

Jack looked down at the crumbs on his plate, "Sure," he said. "How long do we have before the next briefing?"

Checking his watch, Daniel said, "Two hours from now. Shall we get started?"

Nodding his head, Jack followed Daniel out of the commissary to his office.

* * *

Two hours later, Jack's head was swimming with facts and figures, as well as pictures of another planet. In a week, he would be heading through the Gate and setting foot on that planet with Sam. There was a chance that the two of them would die and she was still running scared.

He sat through the briefing this time on logistics and strategy. Kawalsky kept looking from Sam to Jack, as though he had a question to ask one of them, but neither looked at him.

When the briefing was done, Sam fled before Jack could talk to her again. Kawalsky cornered Jack on the way to Sam's lab.

"Jack, what's going on?" Kawalsky asked. "Are you in any shape to be doing this? Have you even been cleared for active duty? This is ridiculous," the younger man spat, confused at the turn of events.

Nodding back to the briefing room, Jack said, "You heard them, I'm leading this mission. They say that I am and so away I go. You know how it works." He turned to leave but stopped, "See you next week, Charlie. I would use your time wisely. Now, if you will excuse me, I have to find Sam." He turned and walked away without another word, leaving the other man standing alone in the hallway

OoOoOo

Sam was hiding in her lab, hoping Jack would not come looking for her. She was still reeling from their last discussion. Part of her wanted to jump into his arms when he said those words, but the last time she had let her heart lead, she had almost made the biggest mistake of her life.

A knock at the door made her jump, and she was glad she had not turned on the overhead lights. The doorknob rattled but she had locked it; there was no way Jack could get in.

Knuckles rapped on the door again, "Sam, open the door I know you're in there. Talk to me, Sam. I just..." Jack sounded so dejected that Sam almost opened the door. "Come home for dinner tonight and we can talk about this. I'm going to take Charlie up to the cabin tomorrow. I've already arranged the flights. I want you to come with us. Say yes, Sam." His footsteps left, but stopped and came back, "I love you, Sam. Don't run from me; I won't hurt you."

Sam closed her eyes. She knew what he was asking. This was more than a simple trip to his cabin. He was offering to share a part of himself with her. The only way she could accept it was to say yes to his offer of marriage.

Time was running out; she had to sort this all out.

* * *

A while later, Sam still sat alone in the dark, thinking about the past. For a long time she had ignored men. She was focused on her career, making a name for herself in both the Air Force and the scientific community. In those fields consisting of mostly men, Sam had tried to establish herself as one of the guys. That had meant ignoring any and all of the advances of her male co-workers.

Then she had met Jonas Hansen. He was the instructor of her Level Two hand-to-hand combat class. Sam was soon the top student and that seemed to peak Jonas' interest. As soon as the class ended, the flowers and other gifts began arriving. Looking back, now Sam could see that he was a borderline stalker even then.

Back then, it was another story entirely. Sam had been flattered by his attention. The feminine part of her lapped up the attention and shoved the rational part into the closet.

It was a whirlwind romance and two months later, they were engaged. A few months later, everything was disintegrating as Jonas became a possessive, almost psychotic man. Finally the mirage crumbled when he saw her with another man. Jeremy was an old academy friend, whom she had hugged goodbye when they parted.

With a deep sigh she remembered what followed....

_

* * *

Entering Jonas' apartment, Sam was distracted by her meeting with Jeremy. She_ _was supposed to meet Jonas there for dinner. _

_With a smile on her face__,__ she closed the door. It had been good to see Jeremy again. It was exciting to hear about his new baby and she couldn't contain herself. She had hugged her friend and promised to come by and meet his wife, Marie. They were newly stationed here and Marie didn't know many people on base yet._

_Still lost in thought__,__ she didn't see the first punch coming. It slammed her into the hall table. Her arm struck hit the edge opening a deep gash. Jonas lashed out immediately after knocking her into the wall__,__ stunning her._

_Shocked at what had happened, she looked up to find Jonas standing over her__,__ ready to hit her again. "You thought you could fool me__,__ didn't you? I saw you with him, what is his name?" His_ _voice was full of venom. _

_Rubbing the tender spot on her cheek, Sam tried to understand what he was talking about. She could feel the blood dripping down her arm._

"_What's __whose__ name? Saw me what?" Sam asked._

_Jonas came closer,_ _his face darkening. "I saw you with that man," he said. "You didn't even try to hide it."_ _His fist lashed out at her__,__ but Sam was able to block it and the next. Using the skills he had taught her__, __she managed to get to her feet and out the door._

_Back in her own apartment, Sam stared at herself in the mirror. The place where he had struck her was already showing as a dark mark on her cheek. She knew that she needed to get her arm looked at__;__ it would need stitches, but she couldn't face that yet. She had something else to do __first. Grabbing a towel__,__ she wrapped it around her arm. Taking calming __breaths,__ she thought about what happened._

_Sam looked down at the ring on her finger and made a choice._ _She was not the type to make excuses for herself or anyone else. If Jonas had done this once__,__ it would happen again._

_Slipping the ring off her finger, she placed it back in its__ case__. Grabbing a cardboard box from the closet__,__ she slowly went around the rooms of her home gathering all of his gifts and putting them into the box. Using intra-base mail__,__ she sent it back to him and a week later she was in Iraq._

* * *

Getting to her feet, Sam paced the room. Jack wasn't Jonas, she knew that. Jonas had threatened her many times before he had actually hit her, but there had been many other signs which she had ignored. Any compliment that he had given her had been back handed. On the surface, the words seemed to be complimentary, but there was always another meaning to his words.

Looking over at her desk, Sam stilled as her eyes fell on the picture of Charlie. She loved that boy so much and his father, as well. Jack said he loved her. She had trusted him with her life. Could she trust him with her heart?

Sam looked back at the picture, and then crossed to the desk and took out the one of Jack she kept there. Looking at the photograph, she realized that it was time to take a leap of faith and find out if he would catch her when she fell.

* * *

Sorry this was late. Yesterday was a holiday here in Canada and I didn't have time to get it done. I hope to have the next chapter ready for Wednesday. Cross your fingers. ~Kelleth~

* * *


	18. Falling For You 18

**Author's Note:** As promised here it is. Enjoy. There is only three more after this and I would love to know what you guys think. You've all been pretty quiet of late.

Thank you to **ALIMOO1971** for giving me an idea how to add a bit to this story. Alimoo can you figure out where it is?

I made some late additions so if you see any errors let me know.

* * *

The next morning Sam arrived at the house early to make waffles. Rubbing her eyes tiredly, she thought about the sleepless night she'd spent thinking about Jack's question.

What was the right choice? Should she agree to marry Jack? Marriage would affect all three of them; there was Charlie to think about as well. Sure, the boy thought she was fun to be around, but would he want her to be his mother? When Jack first woke up in the hospital, Charlie said he wanted them to be a family, but after that he hadn't said a word about it. Did he still feel that way?

Preoccupied, Sam managed to mix batter and make waffles. When she had a large stack ready she woke up Jack and Charlie. Father and son wasted no time getting ready for breakfast. When Charlie entered the kitchen, his eyes lit up.

"Sam! You made us waffles. You've never done that before. I missed you yesterday, but Dad said you were busy at work and you couldn't come home last night. We're going to the cabin later today. Dad promised."

She looked over at Jack, who wouldn't look at her. Instead, he was looking intently at his syrup-covered waffle. Studying him, she knew he had slept as much as she had last night, wondering what her answer would be. Pasting a happy smile on her face, Sam sat down to eat.

Throughout the meal, Jack and Charlie talked about the trip to Minnesota that Jack had planned yesterday after learning about the mission. He knew how missions like this could end; he wanted Charlie to have some good memories, in case he didn't come home.

When the food was almost gone, Jack still hadn't looked at her. Panic coursed through Sam. Had he changed his mind about marrying her already? She tried to catch his eye, but he kept his attention on Charlie as he told him about plans he had for them while they were at the cabin. Sam smiled at the way they spoke. The two of them made the cabin sound like heaven.

Feeling very isolated, Sam played with her food. She had started to clear away the dishes when Charlie turned to her, "Sam, these were great. Can we make this a new tradition for our new family? We can have them every week on Saturday or Sunday."

Jack didn't look at either of them, "Charlie, it's Tuesday and that depends on Sam, it's her recipe. It's all up to her." Now, he looked at Sam, his eyes demanding an answer to his question.

Charlie, oblivious to the tension between the two adults, went on about the waffles, "I know that, but I think we should try and develop traditions like we used to have." His eyes looked away and you could hear the sadness in his voice. "It's something that we'll always have to remember, even if things go wrong." The boy seemed to have picked up some of Jack's melancholy spirit.

Jack looked at Charlie. His son had been through so much, yet he seemed untouched by it all. Jack was proud of him. He could not help but remember the last time they had been to the cabin, when he'd told Charlie that he and Sara were getting divorced.

Switching gears, Charlie pulled himself from the funk and asked, "Dad, how long will we be at the cabin this time?"

Smiling at his son's enthusiasm, Jack said, "Three or four days. It depends on some things."

Sam decided this was a good opportunity to tell Charlie that she was leaving, too. "I have to go away too, Charlie. My Dad will come and stay with you here or you can go to the apartment. You can choose where you want to stay."

Charlie's face got brighter, "I'll go there. Can I call him right now and let him know what I want to do?" He got up from the table without waiting for an answer, but stopped. "Dad, could we leave as soon as I talk to Grandpa? We haven't been to the cabin for a very long time. Please, Dad." He looked over at Sam and got an idea. "And Sam, she could come with us, too. Couldn't you, Sam?"

Unable to stop herself, she looked over at Jack. "I could come, Charlie. I don't have to be back at work until your dad has to report." She couldn't resist his excitement, as she was caught up in it as well. "But I don't know. This trip is for you and your dad." She hesitated to say more, because she had not been asked to come by the one who should have invited her, at least, not this morning.

"Dad wants you to come. Don't you, Dad?" He looked from Jack to Sam trying to figure out why she was resisting.

Meeting Sam's gaze for the first time, Jack said, "It's up to Sam if she wants to come. I think it is a great idea." He smiled. "What do you think, Samantha, shall we all play hooky?"

Sam had no doubt what he was asking. If she said yes to this trip to the cabin, she was saying yes to much more.

Opening her mouth, she told him, "Yes, let's go."

* * *

Five hours later they touched down in Minnesota. Jack rented a truck and with one last stop at the grocery store, they headed to the remote cabin on the edge of a pond.

Sam was glad Jack knew where he was going, because she was soon hopelessly lost. The sun was warm as it shone through the windshield of the truck as they pulled up in front of the cabin. It was situated in a large clearing on the edge of a small lake surrounded by trees.

Jack quickly slipped from the truck and wandered down to the dock, staring out at the calm blue pond. She could see the tension flow out of Jack in waves, but slowly she could see that just being there eased it.

Charlie, who had sat between them on the drive asked, "It's beautiful, isn't it, Sam?" looking out over the small pond. The wind rippled the lake gently through the open window and Sam drank in the smell of pine.

Taking a deep breath, she pulled him close as she said, "Yes, Charlie, it is. Thank you for inviting me."

"You belong with us, Sam. Don't leave us, please." Charlie gave her one last squeeze and a smile before climbing out of the truck and following his dad down to the dock and staring out at the water.

Jack looked back as he heard Charlie come closer. He lifted his arm and put it around his son's shoulders.

Staying where she was, Sam watched the two of them through the windshield. After a few moments, Jack looked back and motioned for her to join them with a tilt of his head.

Getting out of the truck, she joined them on the edge of the water. As Sam came to a stop beside him, Jack put his other arm around her pulling her close to his side. Staring out over his pond, she felt herself falling in love with him all over again.

* * *

After a quick lunch, Jack and Charlie pulled a pair of lawn chairs down the dock and prepared to sit there for hours with their fishing lines in the water. Sam pulled her own chair beside their's but she had brought along some of the science journals to read. Her work with the Stargate had made her fall behind on her reading and this seemed like a good time to catch up.

Jack let Sam have her fun while he had his own, but he really couldn't stand the fact that she was working. He caught Charlie's eye and they made silent plans to help Sam relax. The two of them got to their feet and Jack grabbed Sam, while Charlie grabbed the journal from her fingers. In three steps, Jack was across the dock and about to drop Sam into the pond. He'd forgotten that she knew a few tricks and before he could let go, both of them were in the water, sputtering.

Sam looked over at Jack and without warning lunged at him dunking his head under the water. Charlie shucked off his shoes and jumped into the water as well. Soon, the three of them were playing in the water having a great time.

Finally, Jack called a truce and he walked out of the water, wincing as his shoes squished. Sam followed behind him, frowning at the fact that she had lost her sandals in the water. While the adults went into the cabin to change, Charlie laid out on the dock letting the sun dry him. It was so close he could almost taste the wedding cake. Soon, Sam would be his mother for real.

Jack emerged from the small house first and said, "Charlie, go get changed. We're going for a hike. We scared all the fish away, we won't catch anything now. Ask Sam if she wants to come, too."

Charlie laughed and got to his feet, "Dad, we never catch anything."

Smiling at his son, Jack called, "Don't say that! You'll jinx us. We will so catch something and then we'll have to decide what to do with it."

With a happy grin, Charlie ran into the house to change and to collect Sam before she buried herself in another journal.

After a long day outdoors, the three of them ate dinner out on the front porch. Charlie fell asleep with his head on the table, his dinner half eaten. Jack picked up his exhausted son and carried him off to bed.

Tucking the boy in, Jack smiled at how much fun they had today. On their hike, they saw a deer with her fawn, some squirrels, and a momma bear and her cub. It was wonderful to see Charlie happy and to see how Sam was with his son. The whole day had cemented his decision to marry Sam, both because he loved her, and because she loved his son.

Whistling a tuneless song, Jack returned to the main room where Sam was cleaning up the mess made from supper.

Jack stood in the doorway watching her, "Sam," She looked up, unsure what he wanted. "You can have the other room. I'll sleep out here on the hide-a-bed. It's been a long day and you didn't sleep much last night. I can finish cleaning this up." He took the plates from her hand and nodded to the room.

"Thank you, but I'm not tired," she said. "I think I'll go sit on the dock for a while before I turn in. It's such a beautiful night." Sam walked off without looking back.

* * *

Sam sat on the edge of the dock with her feet in the water. The night was warm and she could see so many stars. It reminded her of those nights in Iraq and how safe she had felt with Jack at her side. He was a good man and he loved her. There was no longer a question in her mind.

From the cabin, she heard the door open and close. She knew that it was Jack coming down the path to the water. She looked up and found their star and a feeling of peace settled over her. This was the right choice.

Turning her head, she met his gaze. His eyes were blatant in showing his emotions. She could see how Jack felt about her mirrored in their depths. Turning, she looked up at the stars again and found Sam's Star once more.

It wasn't until Jack sat down beside her that she spoke, "Jack, there is something I need to explain to you. You know about Jonas and I think you can guess how it ended." she unconsciously rubbed the scar on her arm. Before she could answer the question he was sure to ask there were things she need to explain.

"But I need to tell you why. He hit me once and that was all I needed to know about him. I left him but Jonas left me with more scars than this one." she lifted her arm to show him the pale line.

She turned away from him and took a deep breath, "Jonas made me afraid, afraid to feel, to love. I was afraid to trust myself and my feelings. Then I met you. When we were in the prison I could love you and not have to do anything about it, I was safe inside that room. You made me feel safe, something I had not felt with a man in a long time. Then we escaped and I lost you." she looked over at him hoping he would understand why she had done what she did.

"I tried to find you because I didn't want to loose that feeling, but when they did finally find you I was afraid. All those doubts came back. We were in a place where I couldn't hide. If you knew who I was then I would have had to act on those feelings give you control over my happiness. I didn't trust myself enough to let you love me but yesterday." she reached out to touch his face, "The fear of living without you became stronger than my other fears. Jack, I knew that I had to take a leap of faith. I'm ready."

Not looking away from her he asked quietly, "Ready for what, Sam?"

She'd hoped saying yes to this trip and her words just now would be enough, but she should have known that he'd want a specific answer to his question. Looking directly at him again, she said, "Yes."

"Yes, what?" Jack asked as he leaned in closer; he needed to hear it said.

"Yes, Jack O'Neill, I will marry you." Sam's voice was quiet, but Jack heard every word. "I love you and I want to be your wife and Charlie's mother."

All the tension seemed to leave him and he cupped her cheek with his hand.

"Yes?" Jack asked, searching for confirmation.

Sam nodded.

"Good, then I can give you this."

From his pocket, Jack took a velvet box and opened it. Inside was a simple band with small diamonds set in it.

"I didn't see the point in getting you a huge ring," he said. "You wouldn't be able to wear it all the time."

Pulling the ring from its nest, Jack took her hand and helped her to her feet.

The night around them was silent as the stars looked down upon them. Millions of years away Sam's Star twinkled as Jack and Sam made silent promises to each other to love one another and to face what ever trials were on the horizon together. Jack stared into her eyes amazed that she had said yes, I love you, Sam. Thank you for loving me and getting me through the hardest time in my life. I fit weren't for you I would have died over there in Iraq but knowing you were out there somewhere I needed to live, just so that I could find you and do this." Lifting her hand to his lips he kissed it once and then slipped the ring on her finger.

They stared at one another for a moment. Then he wrapped his arms around her, tugging her close as he kissed her. Time seemed to stand still while they stood there in the moonlight slowly dancing to music only they could hear.

As he held Sam close in his arms Jack knew he was finally home.

* * *

Well what is going to happen I would love to hear your thoughts and specualtion. I really like that part it lets me know if I forgot anything. ~Kelleth~


	19. Falling For You 19

**Author's note:** Hello again. Well here is today's offering. Hope you like it. We are getting close to the end. Okay if you folks want the rest of this story you need to speak up. Right now I have a sinus infection and I really don't feel like doing anything. So if you want me to post the next chapter tomorrow speak now or wait until Monday.

I have fixed the poll to allow for two votes. I thought that I did that, but I forgot. So if you feel inclined vote for another choice. So far I plan to post Mirror, Mirror? And then the Gladiator fic called Faith and Hope since it is much closer to being done while working on the Asgard Baby fic and Dreams of the Soul.

**To my anonymous reviewers: ** **Yolie (): **All I will tell you is read the chapter and enjoy. **Dp ():** Thank you (bows). **H ():** I know life has been a little crazy for me to. I have been sick and all I want to do is climb into bed and sleep. I loved the cake line too. It was one of my favorites it just seemed like something that Jack's child would think.

* * *

Charlie woke the next morning to find Sam sitting on the edge of his bed. Jack was standing behind her with his hand on her shoulder.

Immediately, the boy sat up, his expression very concerned, "What is it?" Charlie asked. "Is something wrong, what happened? Do you have to leave right now?" Both adults could hear the fear in Charlie's voice.

Shaking her head, Sam grabbed his hand, "No, nothing's wrong. Your dad and I have decided to get married." She looked over her shoulder at Jack and then back to Charlie, "Are you okay with that?"

Sam was worried about his reaction, but Charlie's face split into a huge grin. "That's awesome! Where, how soon?" the boy demanded as he launched himself into Sam's arms.

Jack just laughed, "Whoa, slow down, Tiger. We just decided this last night, we haven't thought further than that. The way I see it, we go home a few days early and try to get everything done before Sam and I leave for our trips." Jack looked at Sam, "Would you be okay with that?"

Nodding her head, Sam said, "Yes, that should be fine. I would love to do some fishing before we go."

Charlie looked over at his dad, "When you marry Sam, would it be all right if I called her 'mom'? I know that Mom was my mom but Sam's...." he trailed off, unsure how to explain his feeling to them.

Sam immediately looked over at Jack, unsure how he would react to his son's question.

Swallowing hard, Jack looked at Charlie and then at Sam. He wasn't ready for that question. He knew Sam and Charlie had been through a lot together. They had mourned him and Sara together. His son had deep feelings for Sam and Jack could understand that. Actually, he was surprised he was okay with it. Only a few weeks ago, Jack thought he would never have room in his life for Smiley Sam, but here she was, holding his son and getting ready to marry him.

His father was silent for so long, Charlie began to wonder if he should have asked. "Dad, it's okay," he volunteered. I can still call her 'Sam', I just thought..." Charlie slipped off the bed and out of Sam's arms. Dejectedly, he began to walk across the room.

"Charlie, its fine," Jack protested, effectively stopping his son's retreat. "I was just surprised, that's all. You can call Sam 'mom'. That is, if she wants you to." Smiling, Jack reached out, grabbed Sam's hand and squeezed. This was easier than he thought it would be.

"Why don't you call your dad and let him know of our plans," Jack said to Sam. "While you're at it, I'll make breakfast." Jack turned and gave Charlie a conspiratorial wink. Then, without further delay, Jack and Sam left Charlie to get dressed.

Sam's conversation with her father was short and ended with his hearty congratulations. Jake insisted she call Mark and Meg to let them know about the wedding as well. That conversation was longer by far; Sam had to tell Meg the details of how she and Jack met.

Smiling as she hung up the phone, Sam turned to leave the cabin. The day was warm and she wanted to enjoy it.

Stopping on the porch, she watched Jack and Charlie. The two of them sat together on the dock, fishing lines in the water, enjoying the sun and being together. She hesitated to join them, to intrude on their time together as father and son.

Jack looked so calm. He seemed at peace with himself and the hand he hnd been dealt. He was a man who had gone through hell and come out stronger than ever.

Sensing the intensity of Sam's gaze, Jack turned.

"Sam, why don't you take my line?" he said. "I have some calls to make."

"Sure," she said, walking down to the edge of the water and stopping beside him. Getting to his feet, Jack held out the pole and motioned to the chair. Her smile got even bigger as she crossed the dock. "Would you make us a snack while you're up there?"

Passing her the pole, Jack grabbed her and gave her a quick kiss. "Sounds fine. I'll get some munchies. See you in a few minutes."

"Yuck! Do you have to do that here?" Charlie exclaimed. But as Sam settled into her seat, she could see the boy was just kidding, he loved it. He wore a large smile as he stared out over the pond.

* * *

A while later, Jack came out of the cabin and handed Sam some papers. "You need to fill these out. They're for the marriage license."

Sam frowned, "Where on earth did you get these?"

Smirking, Jack replied, "I told you I had some calls to make. I had them faxed to me. I had a fax machine installed here in case the PTB had to reach me a few years ago."

Still frowning at the paper, Sam began to fill out the information needed. As soon as she was done, Jack whisked them away and faxed them back to the proper people.

The next day the three of them went for a hike. Jack led them up to a high meadow. When they arrived, Sam laid out a blanket and put out a lunch. The three of them sat down and enjoyed being a family. After a while, Charlie laid down and fell asleep.

Jack took Sam's hand and led her a little ways away and showed her the small lake. They stood on the edge of it and Jack took her hand. "Sam, I have an idea. I would like to get married at the cabin. I have already set things in motion, but I wanted to tell you about it. Marry me here in a few days time. Just trust me, it will be beautiful."

Sam smiled, "That sounds wonderful. I can't imagine anything better." After Jonas, she had never thought she would have the chance again and so a wedding had not been in her train of thought for a very long time.

"Good then, I'll continue plans. Leave it all to me." he said as he kissed her forehead.

* * *

The three of them spent the next few days hiking, fishing, and using the battered canoe to look around the lake. Each night, Charlie fell into bed, exhausted and happy. They were a really family in everything but name, and even that would be done soon. They had promised that it would be done before they had to go away, and time was running out.

The last night, Sam stood out on the dock alone, looking up at the sky. It was a beautiful night and she loved standing out here, enjoying the beautiful night sounds. Footsteps approached and she knew it was Jack. He wrapped his arms around her, "How are you doing, Beautiful?"

Smiling, she leaned back into him, enjoying his arms around her, "I'm fine, how about you?"

"Worried, what will happen to Charlie if we don't come back? He's been through so much, I don't want him to lose either of us. Orders are orders, but I can't help but wonder if one of us shouldn't step back and try and stay behind if we can." she could hear the fear in his voice, not for them, but for Charlie.

She sighed, "Jack, you know operations like this, they don't let you back out. This is bigger than both of us now. It always was. I think things are happening that are out of our control. It is like someone knows what is supposed to happen and is making it happen. Jack, there is no way that you should be on that mission, but you are. When we get back, we can try to get one of us removed from the mission, but I don't think it will help."

"Sam, I think you're right, but we have to try." He tightened his grip on her and they stayed that way until it began to gently rain.

Fleeing the moisture, Jack held onto Sam's hand. They hit the porch and he pulled her back into his arms, "Tomorrow, we will be married. Are you sure about this?"

"I've never been more sure about anything in my life. I love you, Jack and nothing can make me change my mind." Rising up on to her tippy toes, she kissed his lips and Jack forgot everything else.

* * *

The next day, Sam was making dinner, wondering when this wedding was going to happen, when there was a loud knocking on the door.

Wiping her hands, she opened the door only to see her father standing on the porch on the other side of the door.

"Congratulations, Sammy. I'm so happy for you." Jake pulled her into his arms.

Sam couldn't keep the surprise out of her voice, "Dad! What are you doing here? Did you come for the weekend?"

Letting her go, he said, "Sort of. I brought Mark and his family. Jack said I should invite them."

Looking over his shoulder, she could see Meg and Mark standing beside the rented mini-van. The two kids could be seen still buckled into their car-seats. Sam was still confused, "Ah, sure why don't you come in? I have dinner almost ready."

Meg reached the porch first with her two children in hand. She put them down on the floor and turned to Sam.

"Oh, no," Meg protested, effectively negating any plans Sam might have had to finish dinner preparations. "Off to the shower, you need to look your best." With that, she pushed Sam toward the door she hoped was the bathroom.

Sam stopped, "Meg, what's going on? Tell me." She looked at Meg who just smiled.

"Fine," Sam capitulated, "but the bathroom is that way." Sam pointed to the other side of the cabin.

Meg let her go, "Off you go then, but I will tell you nothing. Shoo!"

Sam looked to her father for help, but found none. With a dramatic sigh, she headed for the bathroom. Meg Carter was a force to be reckoned with at the best of times, let alone when she put her mind to it.

About the time Sam closed the door, Jack and Charlie entered the cabin. Jack stopped when he saw a strange woman in his kitchen. "Hello?" he held out his hand, "And you are?"

Taking his hand and shaking it, she introduced herself, "Meg Carter. I'm married to Sam's brother, Mark. Jacob said it would be all right if we came along, too."

Jack lifted his hands up, "No, I'm glad you're here," he said. "Now, where is Jake? There's no car outside."

Meg smiled at him, "He and Mark went to pick up some things. I wanted to get the ball rolling. Sam's in the shower. Your turn is next." Meg wrinkled her nose at the smell of him. "What have you been doing?"

"Charlie and I have been rock climbing. Together, we made it up the face. It was hard going."

The water shut off in the bathroom and Meg's whole demeanor changed as she put a plate into his hands and shoved him out the front door. "Outside, I'll let you know when you can come back in." And she shut the door in his face.

After the door closed, Jack sat down on the step, muttering about bossy females. The door opened again and Meg stuck her head out. "Eat and then you can come back in. I should have Sam in her room by then."

Jack looked at the plate grumbling, but there was a huge smile on his face; everything was falling into place. Eating the sandwich, he wondered where Charlie was and if he should rescue the boy from Meg Carter.

* * *

Eyes wide, Charlie watched as Meg pushed his dad out the door and closed it in his face. She quickly opened it again and handed him some food.

When the door closed again, she saw Charlie standing there. "You must be Charlie," she said. "I'm Meg, your new aunt. Do _you_ know what is going on?"

Charlie shook his head and Meg smiled, "Then, it's a surprise for you too. Do you mind keeping these two busy while I do some things?"

He looked at the two children playing in the corner with toys Meg had brought. Shrugging his shoulders, he said, "I could do that. Do I have to bathe too?"

"Yes, you do. This is a special day, you have to. Trust me." Meg turned back to the food and continued to fix a plate for Charlie and the kids.

Charlie sat down by the two kids and helped Maggie do a puzzle, while David gnawed on a teething toy. "Could I have a shower?" Charlie asked out of the blue, trying to sound mature. "I'm too big for a bath."

Meg smiled, "That's fine but you do need to clean up, okay? Bring Maggie over and the two of you can eat. I'll get Mark to feed David when he gets back."

He took the little girl's hand and led her over to the table, "Sure, I was going to do it tonight anyway." Charlie finished his plate as Sam left the bathroom and headed for her room.

"Meg, what's going on?" She demanded.

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough. Just get dressed and put on a button up shirt. I want to do your hair," Meg said. Then she turned to Charlie, "Off to the shower with you."

Standing up, the boy gave her a salute, "Yes, ma'am!" Charlie paused to grab his towel from his room and disappeared into the bathroom.

Meg followed Sam into the bedroom with a chair, "I will be in to do your hair in a few moments. Don't forget to wear a button up shirt. I just need to wait for Charlie to be done in the shower so he can watch the kids."

Sam dressed and then towel-dried her hair, wondering just what was going on.

* * *

A knock sounded on the door a little while later and Meg walked in, "Sit down, Sam. I'm going to do your hair." Sitting reluctantly, Sam allowed herself to be primped. There was no mirror in the room and Sam had no idea what the other woman was doing.

"Meg, I have Sam's clothes, can I come in?" Jake's voice came through the door.

"Yes, just bring them in and put them on the bed. She's decent," Meg said as she maneuvered Sam's hair.

The door opened and Jake came through the door, "Sam, you look wonderful," he said. "I'll see you in a little while." She heard him lay something on the bed and leave again. Sam tried to turn her head to see what he left, but Meg held onto her hair, "Not yet. You can see it in a minute."

A while later, Meg stepped to the side and grabbed a mirror, "All done," she said. "Here you go, Sam." Taking the proffered mirror, Sam stared at her reflection. Meg had done a great job, but Sam was still confused. Grabbing her sister-in-law's hand, she demanded, "Meg, it's beautiful, but why do I need to look like this?"

Meg pulled her to her feet and crossed over to the bed. She unzipped the bag to reveal a dress Sam recognized, "This is my mother's dress? How? Why?" Sam felt stupid, as she couldn't form complete sentences.

The smile on Meg's face got bigger, "Haven't you figured it out yet? It's for your wedding, of course! Jack has it all arranged. You're getting married tonight."

Sam opened her mouth, but no words came out. When nothing had happened all day, she thought that Jack had just changed his mind and decided to wait a little longer. She hadn't expected anything like this.

* * *

There you have it. Remember if you want the Sunday chapter you had better speak up now. Sorry this was late but thems the breaks.

Let me know what you think, Please. ~Kelleth~


	20. Falling For You 20

**Author's Note:** Thank you for all your well wishes. I do feel better now that I have taken some antihistamines. There is one more after this chapter and you will get it soon. Watch for it Tuesday or Wednesday.

I have two short stories, A letter From Cam... on Thursday and Between the Scenes on Saturday and then Mirror, Mirror? will begin on June 1st. This story is all done on paper and I have about 12 chapters in hand. My plan is to post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with a chapter on the weekend if enough people review and ask for it through the week.

To my anonymous reviewers:** Yollie (): **Thank you for your review. I'm got some rest and here it is. Enjoy. **H ():** I never thought of Meg taking Janet's place as the Napoleonic Warmonger. I just needed someone to help Sam with her hair because I assume she's like me and can't do anything with it if their life depended on it. dp (): Thank you for the compliment, I hope you enjoy the wedding. **Noes ();** you guys make it hard to resist posting.

* * *

"My what?" Sam asked, looking again at her mother's dress. For once in her life, her brain failed her as she tried to process what Meg had said. When Jack had told her they would be getting married at the cabin she envisioned just the two of them and Charlie; she hadn't imagined that she would have any of her family there.

Smiling, Meg said, "Jack had it all planned out. You're getting married this afternoon and this is the dress you always wanted to wear. You told me that at my wedding. Your dad had it cleaned and brought here for you."

Sam just stared at the dress, unsure what to say. This was insane; Jack planned the wedding? Sam looked at Meg, uncertain of what to do. She didn't have a ring, a gift, or anything for Jack. They couldn't get married like this, at the drop of the hat, could they?

Meg watched her sister-in-law and began to get worried, "Sam, are you all right? Have you changed your mind? If you have, I'll go tell Jack and we'll get out of here." She started for the bedroom door.

Grabbing her hand, Sam said, "No Meg, it's not that. I was surprised, that's all. I never expected something like this from Jack. I know him better than anyone. I know he loves me but…" she paused as unshed tears sparkled in her eyes.

Part of her had still been scared this was all for Charlie, and that Jack didn't really love her, but felt he needed a mother for his son. Looking up at Meg, she spoke with her voice full of awe, "He really loves me. I never expected to feel like this."

Meg handed her a tissue, "Good thing we haven't started on your makeup or we'd have to redo it now. Here, you need this."

Giving Sam a minute to gather herself, Meg fussed with the dress, although it was just fine. Looking over at Sam, she saw that the woman she thought of as her sister was ready. Lifting up the dress, she smiled. "Let's go, then. The clock is ticking and we don't want to keep Jack waiting. He might think you changed your mind."

Sam pulled Meg into a hug, "Thank you for being here. It means a lot to me. I've never been one to have a lot of friends. I was always too smart, and people resented that. Thank you for being you. I love you, Meg."

Returning the hug, Meg said, "You deserve this, Sam. Jonas was wrong. You're beautiful and lovable. Never listen to his voice in your head."

Sam started to protest, but Meg interrupted,. "Sam, don't say you don't listen, I know you do. He's wrong. The fact that Jack loves you proves it. You stayed with Mark and me just after it happened. I saw what he did to you. That's all in the past, you're here with Jack and Charlie and they love you. Remember that when things get hard, because they will."

Not knowing what to say, Sam just pulled away and began to get dressed.

A while later, Sam was in her wedding dress with her hair all done up, feeling like a bride for the first time. She wasn't able to see herself in the mirror, but Meg insisted she looked perfect. The dress was a gown of plain cream silk with wide neckline that almost could be called off the shoulder. The skirt was gathered at the waist and fell all the way to the floor. Sam decided not o wear the long train because she suspected that the wedding would be outside and she didn't want to ruin it. She hoped that her daughter would wear this same dress someday. The Chantilly lace veil lay across the bed waiting for her to put it on when it was time_. _She knew the dress so well that she could see herself in it.

Mark knocked on the door and Meg left with him to get the children dressed. With nothing left to do, Sam sat down on the bed and waited to be told it was time, knowing her future waited outside this room..

* * *

Jack was shoved into the bathroom once Charlie was done inside. At about the time he emerged from there, Jake arrived with Mark. Sam's brother shook his hand and said, "Aren't you a little old for Sam, and aren't you pushing this wedding?"

At first, Jack didn't know what to say. He looked at Jake who just shrugged to show that he didn't agree with his son's words.

Jack took the challenge in stride and hoped his words wouldn't be misinterpreted, "I love your sister and she loves me," he said. "We saw no reason to wait. Yes, I'm older than she is, but that doesn't matter to her or me. Also, it is none of your business, but if you have a problem, take it up with Sam."

Mark actually blanched at the statement, showing that he wouldn't be doing that. Laughing, Jake slapped his son on the shoulder, "Leave Jack alone. Let's unload the van and set up what we got in the yard." Still chuckling to himself, Jake headed out to the van.

Once that was done, Jake came back into the cabin, carrying two suit bags and handed one to Jack. "Your clothes and Charlie's are in there. It's almost time to begin," Jake said. "Are you sure the chaplain will get here on time?"

Taking the clothes, Jack nodded, "Phil's been here before. Don't worry, everything will be perfect."

Nodding, Jake turned to Mark, who already wore his suit, "Why don't you check on the ladies? Make sure they're ready? Meg will want to dress the two munchkins."

Mark looked over at Maggie and David who were playing quietly in the corner with Charlie. Jack called his son over and the two of them disappeared into Charlie's room.

After closing the door, Jack laid the suit bag on the bed. "Charlie, do you know what's going on today?"

Wide eyed, the boy shook his head. "No, Dad. I don't. Why are those people here? They're related to Sam, but I've never met them. When are they going home again? I like Grandpa and they seem nice, but …" he shrugged, not knowing how to explain his fears that Sam might leave him.

* * *

Charlie's fear was plain to see. Jack crouched down so that he was eye to eye with his son. Grasping Charlie's shoulder, Jack said, "You remember a few days ago Sam and I told you we were going to get married?" Charlie nodded. "Well, I arranged for it to happen today. It's a surprise for Sam. I want you to be my best man. Will you stand beside me while I marry Sam?"

Unsure, Charlie asked, "What do I need to do?"

Smiling he handed his son a wedding band with a ribbon so the boy could wear it around his neck, "You just need to hand this to me when Phil asks me to put the ring on Sam's finger. Can you do that?"

"I can." Charlie took the ring, slipping it around his neck. Lifting his clothes, he only frowned momentarily at the suit and tie before getting dressed. After a few minutes, he turned to his dad. He tried to tie the tie but he was having trouble. Jack took the tie and showed the boy how to do it. Then he pulled the knot apart and handed the tie to Charlie to try again. It took a few tries before he got it right, but then he smiled a huge smile.

Jack looked at his son dressed in a navy suit. The two of them looked smart together. Sam would be so proud of her boys.

Charlie sensed his father's gaze and looked up, "I'm glad you love Sam and that she loves you. I want you to be happy again, like we were before..."

Pulling his son into a tight hug, Jack made him a promise, "We will be, Charlie; we deserve to be."

Stepping back, he ruffled his son's hair, "Now, let's see if everyone else is ready." Hand in hand, they left the room to see what still needed to be done.

* * *

Chaos reigned at the cabin when Phil arrived, Mark and Jake were rushing around, trying to finish the last minute things.

He'd been there for a few minutes when Jack came into the main room with Charlie. When Jack had first called Phil about officiating at his wedding, Phil had been concerned. He had known Jack O'Neill a long time, ever since they had been wet behind the ears boys in the middle of Vietnam. Jack O'Neill had logged many hours in the field since that first tour, and Phil had even been there for a few of them. Jack wasn't a man to let his emotions rule him, but when he'd told Phil that he was getting married again, his friend was concerned.

He'd never seen Jack like this. When Jack and Phil had met in the town near his cabin, he had watched Jack. The man was head over heels in love with this woman, who was a Captain and a scientist, none the less. Only a few months ago, Jack had been declared dead and meanwhile, was rotting away in an Iraqi cell as a POW. When had he had the time to meet and fall in love with a woman?

Phil was worried that Sam was looking for a leg up in her career by marrying a Colonel; he'd told Jack so.

Anger had crossed Jack's face and then he had laughed, "Sam, marrying me for a leg up? Phil, that's a good one. Her father's a Two-Star General. If that was what she wanted, she doesn't need to marry me."

Even then, Phil was uncertain about the situation, and so he pushed Jack to tell him how they met. Jack grudgingly told him about the two weeks they had spent together in that Iraqi prison. Then, Sam came over with Charlie. Jack's eyes had lit up and when Sam saw Jack, a smile lit up her face.

Phil had seen a lot of couples together, but these two seemed to be perfect for each other. When Sam learned that he was an old friend of Jack's, she'd invited him to eat lunch with them. Phil had tried to refuse, but Sam had insisted and the chaplain had agreed.

After lunch, seeing her interact with Charlie and Jack, Phil no longer had any fears about the two of them. They were obviously in love and when he shook Jack's hand after the meal, he agreed to perform the marriage.

* * *

Sam's nerves were getting to her. How much longer would she have to wait? Meg had left a while ago to see how much longer it would be, and she had not come back.

Doing another circuit of the small bedroom, Sam stopped by the door. She wanted to march out there and demand to know what was going on, but Meg had forbidden her to leave the room.

Feeling ridiculous, she paced around the room. She felt like a princess trapped in a tower, waiting for a prince to come and save her.

She was about to wrench open the door when Meg came back in, wearing her bridesmaid dress, "Sorry about that," she said. "Maggie spilled milk all over her dress and I had to change her into the spare one I brought." She stopped and looked at Sam. "You look beautiful. You'll take his breath away. Now, are you ready?"

Sam opened her mouth, but no words came out and she just nodded.

"Good, because it's time. Jack is waiting. Dad is just outside. I have two more things for you." Meg took out a small box and opened it to show Sam a pearl necklace with matching earing. "These are from me and Mark. We are happy for you." she helped Sam put them on before hugging her one last time.

"You will also need this." she passed him the wedding band she had bought the day before they left California, "Let's go."

Sam took the ring and slipped it on her own finger until she needed it later. Taking a deep breath Sam followed Meg out into the main room of the cabin. Her father was waiting by the door.

Meg kissed her check, "You look beautiful. I'll see you after the service."

Jacob took her hand, "You look so much like your mother. She would be so proud of you. I love you, Sam." For a moment, she hesitated, and Jacob reassured her, "Jack's a good man." With his free hand, he tucked her hand into the crook of his arm.

Together they stepped off the porch. Jack and Charlie stood down by the dock. The path was lit by beautiful torches.

As they descended to the water's edge, she caught Jack's eye. He stood next to Charlie dressed in his dress blues and she couldn't believe that he was soon to be hers. His smile got bigger as Jake handed her over to him.

Sam kissed her father's check, "I love you too, Dad. Thank you."

Together, Sam and Jack stepped onto the dock where the chaplain waited. Sam stood beside Jack, not really believing this was all happening. She knew they were going to be married, but she hadn't expected anything like this. She had envisioned a judge's chambers or something like that. It never occurred to her that something this beautiful could be done so quickly.

Jack seemed to sense her feelings and squeezed her hand. Turning, she looked at him and smiled. Jack felt her smile hit him and he couldn't help but smile back. He loved this woman and he couldn't believe she would soon be his wife.

When it was time, Charlie handed him the ring and Sam took his from Meg. Phil said a few words and then Jack took Sam's hand.

"We met in a dark place," Jack began, "and when you found me again, your smile lit up my life. You banished the shadows and made me want to live again. Thank you, Sam, for loving me, and know that I love you." Then he slipped the ring on her finger.

Tears filled Sam's eyes as she took his hand and said, "I had no time to plan what to say. Jack, you're the best man I have ever met. You love your son and you love me. In that dark place, you gave me the strength I needed to endure and you helped me find the light in the darkness. I love you, Jack." she squeezed his hand and it was done.

Phil smiled at the two of them, "I now pronounce you man and wife. Jack, you may kiss the bride." Jack pulled her into his arms and kissed her as the sun set behind them.

After the ceremony, the small wedding party had a quick meal out on the lawn. Of course there was cake. It was a monstrous thing topped with a Air Force bride and groom.

Once they had finished, Jack stood, taking Sam's hand and helping her to her feet. "We would like to thank you all for being here on this special day. We are going to leave you now. Charlie, Jake will take you back to the house tomorrow. Sam and I are going to have a short honeymoon before we have to go on our trips."

Jack pulled his son into a hug, "I love you. We'll see you tomorrow night."

Next, Sam crouched down and pulled the boy into her arms, "Thank you for letting me be your mom, Charlie. I love you. See you tomorrow."

The newlyweds walked hand in hand toward the truck. Jack opened the door and helped Sam into the cab before closing the door and walking around to the other side of the truck. They waved at those left behind and drove away.

Charlie watched them go, standing beside his Grandpa Jake. "We'll all be happy now, won't we?"

Jake watched them go, hoping that they would be.

* * *

Once Sam and Jack disappeared down the road, Jake's mind went into overdrive. It seemed very suspicious to him that both of them were leaving one trips at the same time. A few times in the last few months, Sam had traveled to Washington for the project she was working on, but those trips, he had always known the destination. This time, when he had asked her about where she was going, Sam had been purposely vague. Then she had let it slip that she and Jack were going together on this "trip" and that was why they had to get married before they left.

Why would Sam and Jack have an assignment together? Jack was Spec-ops and Sam basically had a desk job, didn't she? What did their "trips" have to do with their rush to get married? For what reason would they assign Jack to Deep Space Radar Telemetry, unless there was more going on than either of them was telling him.

Jake shook his head; it was time to make a call to an old friend.

Turning to Meg and Mark, who had just come back out of the cabin after changing out of their wedding clothes, he said, "I need to make a call. I need some privacy for a while. Can you keep everyone outside for a while?"

The two adults nodded and herded the kids down to the dock to look at the water. There was only one phone in the cabin and it wasn't cordless. "Thanks, I'll be quick."

Without another word, Jake entered the cabin and closed the door, hoping that George would give him some answers about what his little girl was doing.

* * *

Jack and Sam made it only as far as the next town before they stopped for the night. Jack left Sam inside the truck while he went inside and retrieved the key. Then, he opened Sam's door and scooped her up in his arms and carried her inside.

The ride up the elevator was quiet, as neither of them really knew what to say to the other. Each had imagined this moment, but now that they were here, both were unsure how to act. Jack used the key to open the door, carried Sam through the doorway and kicked it shut behind him.

Setting her on her feet, he cupped her face, "Sam, are we really here?"

Her smile was the same mega watt one that made him fall for her that day in the hospital not too long ago, "Yes, we are, and I don't want to go back. I love you." she turned away.

Jack used his finger to gently turn her back to face him, "Sam, what is it?"

"Jack, you set up this beautiful wedding and I didn't get anything for you. I feel that I let you down." Sam said quietly.

Sighing, Jack grabbed her face between his hands, "Sam, I don't need anything from you other than your love. You are the best thing I have ever come across in my life, and nothing can top that."

Unsure how to answer, Sam just fisted the hair at the back of his neck and pulled his face down to her, "Then show me."

* * *

Thank you to Alimoo1971 for the dress suggestion. It was perfect.

There you have it. Last one on Tuesday or Wednesday. ~Kelleth~


	21. Falling For You 21

**Author's note:** Here we are at the end of the road for this story. A few of you have expressed a desire for me to continue and well I'll think about it. I made some changes to the last chapter on Sunday after I posted it. So if you are interested you can re-read it and let me know what you thought I would love to hear from you.

We have now passed four hundred reviews thank you to everyone who took a minute to let me know they enjoyed my story. This story has surpassed even Wishes of the Heart is popularity.

Sorry about how long it too me and my beta had technical difficulties. Also I wanted to make a few changes.

I had planned to post Mirror Mirror starting Monday but I will have to delay that a week. I will start this story on the 8th of June so that I can have more of it ready to post.

**To my anonymous reviewers: ****H ():** I never mean to make people cry but they still do it sometimes. Sorry about that. Glad you enjoyed it. **Dp (): **You're number 400 send me an email and I will tell you what you've won. As for this chapters length you will have to read and find out. **Noes (): **Sorry but this is the end at least for now. I have to move on to other stories. Watch for them. I will post again!**

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Pain, pain, and more pain … that was all he knew. He almost lost consciousness, only to be jolted awake when a freezing cold bucket of water cascaded over him. They would give him none to drink, but they would use it to keep him wake. Now his tired body was shivering uncontrollably. He just wanted it to end, one way or another. He was tired, body and soul. Even thinking of the Lieutenant didn't keep the darkness at bay.

Then he heard her voice. It was soft and kind, unlike the other voices that shouted their questions at him. "It will be all right, Colonel. You'll make it, you're strong. Please, don't leave me here. You have to fight, fight for us." Warmth wrapped around him like a blanket and the pain was gone.

The same soft voice told him he wasn't there anymore. He had lived through this. It was only a dream. He fought to come out of it, to come back to his real life, to come back to Sam....

Jack jerked awake, unsure where he was. Fear still coursed through him from the memories. He tried to move, but found he was restrained. His breathing was harsh as he used his eyes to scan the room. A hotel room came into view and he realized the weight that held him down was Sam.

Sam was here with him, she was his wife. Tears filled his eyes at the memory of yesterday. Had he frightened her with his nightmare? Taking a deep breath he called out, "Sam?"

* * *

Sam hadn't moved since being awakened by his nightmare. It would be a bad idea to startle Jack, knowing what he could do. If she surprised him, he might lash out, not understanding what was happening and hurt her unintentionally. Her father had done it while gripped by a nightmare when she was a child. It had taken him a long time to forgive himself for what he had done. Sam did not want Jack to add that to his burdens.

As she lay there, waiting, his words from that day in her lab came back to her. He'd told her he was ready to love and have someone to hold him at night when the nightmares came. Tightening her grip gently as his body began to shiver, she began to speak to him. She began with the words she'd used when she thought he might die of the fever in the desert.

Then she went on to tell him that he wasn't there anymore, that he lived through it to come home to Charlie, to her. She told him it was time to wake up, that he was safe, there was no more pain. Most of all that she was here, that she was waiting for him to wake up. Eventually, she lost track of her words but she kept speaking, hoping he would wake up on his own.

She knew the moment it happened. She waited for him to gain control and to remember where he was. A few minutes later, he spoke, "Sam?" His voice was raspy.

"I'm here, Jack. You're safe with me. I'll always be here." Moving for the first time, she came closer and pressed her lips to his, smiling her huge smile at him. "I'm not leaving you ever again."

The tension left his body, "It wasn't all a dream, then? You really married me?" His voice was full of awe.

"Yes, and it was wonderful. It was a beautiful gift. I didn't expect anything like that, thank you." Sam said, trying to replace his dream with good memories as she laid her head down on his chest.

He kissed the top of her head and she knew he was smiling, "My pleasure. I love to see you smile and I will do anything to make it happen."

Dawn cast a dim glow around the room and they knew their time was slipping away. They would soon have to return to their lives and duties.

The Stargate still waited for them with all its possibilities. It called to them both; they needed to see what was on the other side - each of them for different reasons, but Sam wanted to hold on to this moment for as long as she could.

Turning her head, she looked over at Jack, "I never thanked you for what you did in Iraq. If you hadn't stayed by me..." she swallowed as different scenarios ran through her mind.

He shook her gently, "Hey, those things didn't happen. I _was_ there, you got home safe and so did I." He brushed her lips with his to remind her they were safe.

"But you spent all those months there after I was freed. If you had been alone, you probably would have gotten away without being shot and then you would have made it. You'd done it before with a skull fracture. I was dead weight. That was why when I got back I pushed myself. I took all the extra training they would let me do. I never wanted to put another soldier in that place again. "

Jack studied her, "Sam, you were not dead weight. You were amazing. Can you really not see that?" He brought her fingers up to touch the scar on his arm. "I would have died if you weren't there. I was losing blood, too much of it. I got shot, but it wasn't your fault." He cupped her cheek, catching her tears.

"In the end, I lived because you were there. It was your knowledge and courage that saved me. I've seen men pass out trying to do what you did. It wasn't just then you saved me, you did it in so many ways, Sam. It was you that kept me alive all those months in the darkness and pain. I couldn't die and not know if what you said was true, that you might love me, because I knew I loved you."

Tears filled her eyes and she had no idea what to say. This was a man who had been through hell and back and still had the capacity to love her and his son. What had she done to deserve him?

He could see that she was thinking again and decided it was time to distract her. "Don't dwell on what might have happened; it's just a waste of time. Think about the future and the possibilities. Sam, we have our lives together in front of us, let's not ruin or waste it."

Pulling her closer, he brought his lips to hers and Sam's thoughts were replaced with only Jack and how he made her feel.

* * *

Two days later, Sam and Jack had just walked into the house, when the phone rang. Jack answered it, "Hello?"

"Colonel, we have a problem. It's Jackson, he's gone." It was Kawalsky's voice on the other end of the phone line.

Jack frowned. Where would Jackson go? Jack wondered. The last time he had talked to the man, he wasn't even going to leave the mountain before the mission. The archaeologist had planned to do a bunch of research to try and match the architecture on the MALP video. "Gone? What do you mean 'gone'? Find Jackson and get him back to that mountain, we leave tomorrow."

"Jack, it's not going to be that easy. He didn't leave the mountain, he left through the Stargate," Kawalsky said.

Jack closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. He really didn't want to ask the next question but he did it anyway, "Just how did Jackson get through the Gate?"

"I let him go, Jack, I had to," Kawalsky sighed. "Look, Jack, the General is here and he wants to brief you right away. The mission has been moved up. How soon can you and Sam arrange for someone to look after Charlie?"

"We can be there in about ten minutes. Charlie is still in Minnesota with Jake, Sam's dad. We left them there a few days ago."

"Oh, okay." Kawalsky had no idea what to say to that. Was Jack telling him what he thought he was? The Major took a deep breath; there was no way he was going to ask Jack about his suspicion. Their friendship extended only so far. Instead, he said, "See the two of you when you get here."

"See you in a few minutes. Sam says hi." Jack couldn't resist yanking his friend's chain a little more.

Sam smacked Jack's arm and took the phone away from him, "Be nice," then, into the phone she said, "Charlie, we got married at the cabin a few days ago. We'll see you in a few minutes." As Jack grabbed the phone back, Sam could imagine the Major grinning like an idiot back at Cheyenne Mountain.

"Major, have everything ready and recall the men," Jack said. "I guess we'll go after him, assuming you know where he went."

"Yes, sir, I do. He went to Abydos. The planet we were intending to go to."

* * *

The Captain and the Colonel were met at the last elevator by Kawalsky and General Hammond.

"Congratulations on your marriage, you two," Hammond said. "I've taken over the command from General West. The Pentagon decided he wasn't the best man for the job, given the change in circumstances. Follow me and I'll brief you on what happened to Dr Jackson."

The General began walking and Jack shot a hard look at Kawalsky and mouthed, "Why did you tell him?"

Kawalsky shook his head that he didn't tell the General anything. He looked at Sam who had a smirk on her face and realized she knew more than she was telling.

"Captain, your father says hello and he wants to talk to you when you and Jack return. He's a little annoyed with you. He and I had a long talk about as much as I could tell him without clearance. I told him that I'm sure everything will be all right. Don't worry about him or Charlie," the General said as he sat down at the head of the briefing table.

Turning to Jack, he said, "Yesterday, a woman and a teenage boy came through the Gate. At first, they spoke a language that no one understood, but the woman called out the names Dan-yel, O-neel, and Car-ter. Dr Jackson assumed that she was asking for him and went down to the Gateroom. Once he was inside, he told them that you were not there." the General nodded to Kawalsky.

"I was there and I tried to stop him, but he wouldn't listen to me. When he got close enough, the woman grabbed him and put a knife to his throat. She then demanded, in perfect English, we dial a planet she called Abydos. It turned out this was the one we planned to go to. I told the SF in the Gateroom to let her take him, I saw no other options. Then, she and the boy disappeared into the Gate with Dr Jackson She told us that when you two arrived on Abydos, Dr Jackson would be returned to us, unharmed."

With a nod Kaealsky turned the briefing back to General Hammond.

* * *

An hour later, Jack's head was spinning like the Gate as it dialed Abydos. There were humans on that planet and they had taken Jackson for some unknown reason. It was up to them to get him back. It seemed like he and Sam were going; they had no other options. Jackson's life depended on their arriving on the other side.

General Hammond said given the peoples' lack of technological weapons, they probably wouldn't pose a threat to Earth, but he had ordered Jack to take along the nuclear ordinance anyway. Jack was under orders to use it only if needed.

Sam stood beside Jack watching the men disappear into the wormhole. She was worried about Daniel and why the woman would kidnap him? This all made no sense. How had they known their names?

She was terrified about what might happen to her friend, but she couldn't help feeling excited, too. This was her dream, to go out and explore space. She had given up that dream when she tried to get them to go back for Jack. It hadn't mattered then, and it didn't now, he was here beside her and they were about to discover new worlds together.

Soon, only Sam and Jack were left on the ramp leading up to the Stargate. They walked up to the wormhole and Sam couldn't resist reaching out to touch it. With one of her brilliant smiles on her face she said, "I've never been this close to it before. It's beautiful. You can actually see the fluctuations in the event horizon!" Her finger created ripples.

Jack sighed heavily. Now was not the time to let Sam dwell on her scientific side. Hoping that she wouldn't be too mad at him on the other side, he gave her a gentle shove into the wormhole.

He thought about Jackson for a moment, and hoped they would find him alive and not sacrificed to some alien gods. Giving the General watching from the control room one last smart salute, Jack followed Sam into the unknown.

* * *

That is the end. I know people want more and I hope to give it to them but it will be a little while. I have to think this one through a little more.

If you do want to see more let me know and it will make me think faster, well maybe. ~Kelleth~


	22. The Sequel is Up

I forgot to do this when I posted the first chapter and I don't know if you guys care, but I have posted two chapters of the sequel to this story. It's called Catch Me If I Fall.

Kelli


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